


Dark Chakra

by Karralmer



Category: Naruto, The Dark Carpathians
Genre: Crossover, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-26
Updated: 2018-02-26
Packaged: 2019-03-24 06:08:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 83,116
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13805055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Karralmer/pseuds/Karralmer
Summary: Crossover with The Dark Carpathians. He disappeared 10 years ago, breaking her heart. Now another has came into her life with his name and looks, but claiming to be something other than human. Who and what is he? Why does he resemble her childhood crush? And most importantly WHY does he claim to be her husband??!! I don't own or make money from either Naruto or Christine Feehan's Dark Carpathians Series. All rights belong to those those who own and copywrite them.





	1. 1

He flew through the air, a silent lethal specter, his 'body' bonding with the molecules of the very air around him so he could move invisibly and with incredible speeds.

He was the only one of his kind here, in this world, brought here by a mission for his prince. The only child of powerful parents, adopted, he bore their joint knowledge, making him one of the most powerful of his race.

As he moved he thought over the events of the last few weeks. A portal appearing in their world, their prince asking for a volunteer to go through and investigate the other side. He had asked HIM first, explaining the possible dangers and if HE would go.

He understood why his prince had chosen him. He was best suited for the role. His knowledge and skills meant he would have a bigger chance of survival than any other of his people.

He also was starting to loose his ability to feel emotions and see in color, as did all males of his race when they reached a certain age. The only thing capable of reversing the process was when a male found the other half of their soul, the woman they would love and do all in their power to protect, their lifemate. However with their race on the verge of extinction, their women so few and any children born rarely surviving their first year, hope was once slowly fading.

In recent years it was discovered that an old enemy, an mage who was once an allies, had introduced extremophiles to the earth where they all rested. These then got into the males as they 'slept' who passed it to their lifemates during sex. Any children conceived were exposed through their mothers wombs.

Then the discovery of a group of human gifted women capable of being changed-becoming of their race-was revealed, women gifted with various unusual abilities. Anything from higher intelligence to outright shape-shifting. These women were being born their lifemates and capable of the process of becoming something.... more.

This brought hope to their kind. Some human women were able to become something more, the same as their lifemates, saving their souls from the darkness inside them.

For every one of his race were of the earth, connected to and a part of nature. Their males bore the soul of an animal, an wild often viscous animal-like a wolf or cat, territorial and ready to pounce and only the presence of their lifemate could calm the beast inside.

Each male unable to find their lifemate would loose their emotions and ability to see in colour and the beast would increase in strength inside them the longer they were without their lifemates. It constantly urged them to kill, to give in to the need to feed off the life of others, and if they succumb they became wholly evil, feeding off the life of others to sustain their own, living for the momentary pleasure of a kill.

In order to keep their race secret and other people-especially humans-safe this meant other 'unattached' males had to hunt these beings and kill them, ending the lives of childhood friends or even brothers, all for the sake of life. That burden along with their own growing darkness meant a solitary existence for many males of isolation and loneliness when their race were meant to be together.

Their prince was not just the born leader of their people he was the fountain-head, the spirit of their people, essentially the power source. The blood of their line ran through him and into them.

If this world held women capable of becoming lifemates to his people, it would be an gold mine to his fellow unattached males.

However these people did NOT impress or inspire him to reveal himself in any way. They deprived children of their youth, turning them into weapons  from an young age when they SHOULD be enjoying their youth as children before the weight of adulthood was placed on their shoulders.

To a race whose children were few and far between this was horrifying enough, but sending them out to kill each other for money?! And to add females to this lot!? No, he had no intention of ever revealing himself to them. He would investigate this world thoroughly then return to his people and prince with the information and suggestion that even though the earth here was pure and untainted, the humans were NOT worth association, let alone friendship.

His senses suddenly were tripped. Someone was wondering around the site of the portal. The safeguards he had set up there to prevent any access were set off, warning him of human presence. He could NOT allow any of these people into the area. If they discovered the portal they would claim it for their village and he had no idea what their...abilities would do if it came into contact with the magical doorway. If it somehow destroyed it....he would be stuck here, away from his family, people and prince.

Changing direction he put on a burst of speed, hoping to get there in time. Gathering his energy he weaved it through the sky in the direction he was heading, summoning an massive storm to surround the area of the magical gateway.

Only the most stupid of humans would attempt to get through that.

He sensed an massive disturbance up ahead, fighting, spilt blood, the power these humans called chakra chocking the air. A group of humans were fighting ahead, he landed, swiftly becoming solid-his true form, hand immediately burying into the earth at his feet as he sent all his senses into the rich loam.

As always mother earth answered his call, sending him images of what had and was happening. Three young people moving through the trees, being chased by others.

They were barely in their twenties, two males and a female, one of the males with a large white dog. He noticed how the female was riding the dogs back like a horse and how the two males surrounded her protectively, which he whole-heartedly approved of.

She was hunched over-so either injured or exhausted.

He frowned though when he sensed the two males with her. They had a strong connection to nature. While not the favor or connection of his kind, or his parents and himself as her CHOSEN children, it was stronger than most others here.

One boy felt like an insect himself, as if he was an insect given human form.

They other reminded him of the lycan race. He wasn't one or even one of the Guardian Of All-a mix of his race and the lycans-but his connection to wolves, or should he say dogs-was incredible. The dog the girl was riding was HIS, his companion and somehow part of him.

The girl even was touched as well, however slightly. When he touched her mind he gasped in shock. Not only was she physic-one of the human women capable of being turned-but his! She was HIS lifemate! He could feel it, his emotions and colors-which had been fading in recent years-snap back full force. His body and soul calling out for hers, the ritual words-imprinted in every one of the males from the moment he was born-demanding he say them to her, to bind her to him and bring peace to his heart. Even his beast, always whispering tempting and demanding, quietened, settling down peacefully inside him.

Before he could search her mind he felt her spurt of fear and panic, turning her head to glance behind her at the figures chasing them.

Fangs lengthened as fury flooded his senses. How DARE these humans threaten HIS woman! They would learn when he pulled their still beating hearts from their chests and drained their bodies of every drop of their blood! NO ONE touched let alone threatened what was his!

His form shimmered and contorted, an leopard-a creature of speed and agility soon replacing the human form of seconds ago. Short fur the same gold of the sun and eyes of blue bore the animal before it was off.

*************************************************************************

Hinata held onto consciousness by a thread. She was drained of chakra, weak, bleeding and in pain, but she knew she would have to stay awake or all of them would die here and now. Both Kiba and Shino were badly wounded protecting her and now lay as if dead. Only Akamaru was able to help her. However the dog wouldn't be able to do much for her, seeing how his sides were heaving for breath and his fur stained with both his and his master's blood. His first instinct would always be to protect Kiba, but both his pack bond and his master's last wishes before lapsing into unconscious prevented him. Hinata was a pack member along with Shino and even his kiki, and as an naturally dominate animal Akamaru's instincts demanded he protect all of them.

Hinata almost jumped out of her skin again as the sky rumbled ominously, thunder and lightening making itself known. Why had the sky suddenly become dark and foreboding in the last few minutes? Where had this freak storm come from? Why did it leave her feeling threatened somehow. Not by these enemy physically but somehow personally. As if something out there wanted HER and if it got her she would no longer be her but someone else entirely.

Was it that presence she had felt earlier? The one that touched them all almost curiously then suddenly withdrew.

Her body shook as another crack happened, booming loudly for miles and even the enemy were exchanging worried looks.

As one enemy suddenly lunged for her there was a crack and a bolt of lightening split the sky-and the lunging ninja. Hinata almost screamed as the enemy was instantly incinerated in mid movement directly in front of her.

Shock froze everyone, for a ninja to be struck and instantly turned to dust in a splint second was wrong, so wrong. Most people struck by lightening live and usually mostly unharmed, but for one bolt to do this let alone hit a man in mid lunge was more than a billion to one chance. It meant only one thing, the storm AND lightening itself was being controlled directed by someone or something.

What ninja could control the very weather like that and with such skill?!

And why did it wait until now to strike?  
And would she be next?

 _"Do  not be afraid"_ a voice echoed in her head _"you will not be harmed, I forbid it."_

Shocked she felt the presence from before once more, this time actually speaking to her! "Who are  you?!" she looked around desperately "WHERE are you?!"

_"Who I am is of no importance right now, your safety is my top priority. I need you to look at the enemy, focus on them for me."_

With eyes blurry from overuse she forced her head to rise, looking for the enemy....in time to stumble as she narrowly avoided a blow from an kunai.

Akamaru snarled, jowls clamping down over the enemies wrist, teeth digging deep. As Hinata collapsed, exhausted, she heard the scream of agony and fury from the one the dog had grabbed.

 _"Stay awake!"_ the voice snapped _"don't loose consciousness, or they will kill you! Stay with me!"_

"I'm sorry" was all she could manage before everything went dark.

Akamaru was the only one who saw what happened next. As he was kicked in the side by the enemy in an effort to dislodge him something from the corner of his eye caught his attention, movement.

He KNEW the last ninja was coming to aid his teammate, but there was nothing he could do. He couldn't afford to let go. Seconds before the kunai pierced him there was an loud furious growl and something hit his attacker, something blonde. One sniff told him what it was and his top lip peeled back, wild cat.

The ninja screamed as those fangs closed over his throat, there was a dull crack and the sound abruptly stopped as well as all movement.

The ninja dead, the cat's blue eyes turned to the one trying to dislodge him.

The ninja froze at those eyes set on him, all human and nature-born instincts telling him to flee or freeze, maybe the cat would not attack.

The creature crouched, top lip peeled back at him and he knew it would attack so he did the only thing his terrified mind told him to, he fled.

He was brought down before he even took a single step.

Akamaru stumbled weakly over to his master and his companions, whining as he nuzzled them each in an effort to awaken any of them, concerned about them.

Movement behind him caused the dog to spin around and crouch, growling threateningly. The figure there held his hands up and tried to look harmless "peace my noble friend, I am not here to threaten your master or his companions. I just want to help. I am a healer, I can aid them."

The dog relaxed only minutely until the figure held his hand out as a peace offering "my people are of the earth, we bare a connection to the animal kindgom-just like you-more so than your master does. I was the cat, I only wished to aid you all. We all bare the same link to mother earth, you all and I, you have nothing to fear from me."

The dog sniffed the offered hand thoroughly, scenting EXACTLY what he said was true. This person was connected to the earth in a way no human ever was before. His entire body smelt of earth and minerals and the strange scent Akamaru could only describe as a thunderstorm.

He growled to himself, confused and was shocked when the man answered, obviously understanding him in a way only an Inuzuka previously could "I was also the one to summon the storm. There is something in this area that can not be found by humans. I am protecting and hiding it and could not allow you to find it, but once the earth told me what was happening to you, I came to help" his eyes went to the female, his mate. She was beautiful "and claim the one who is to be my mate."

When the dog growled again his eyes snapped back "no, it is not conquest or an payment. My people are born with only one mate destined to be our other half. They are born for us and we for them. Once we find them we dedicate our life to their happiness, wellbeing and safety. We love them above all else and our children are considered precious" he looked at the dog "my race is almost extinct, every woman and child is treated as precious to every member. My family will treat her as a daughter, just as our prince and the others will."

The dog hesitated then reluctantly moved aside for him.

Even though his every instinct demanded he go and see to his lifemates' health, he moved first to the boy who was the dog's master.

Separating himself from his body as his kind did his soul entered the boy's body as white cleansing light, seeking damage. What he found was unusual. Somehow the boy was mostly human but also dog. It wasn't just the fact his fingers and nails resembled clawed toes, or the eyes but he had enhanced senses just short of a dog itself. Eye sight was enhanced, sense of smell way past human and his hearing was stronger. The connection he had with his companion was more than master and pet, more like best friend and brother-almost symbiotic.

Why he returned to his body he decided he was glad he had saved them.

Next he rose and moved towards the other boy.

Only to be met with a wall of insects, not just any insects, they were like nothing he had encountered before.

When he reached out to try and gain control of them he was instantly thrust away, they refused to be controlled, more than that, they COULDN'T be controlled.

He was baffled, but once he regained control of his shock he realized that they were acting as if the boy was their queen-or the hive mind, and he was threatening him in their collected consciousness.

He tried to reach out to them, to communicate, but they would have none of it. As far as they were concerned, he was an enemy come to finish their host off.

He was just about to gather his power, hoping to stun them long enough to get through when the dog barked a few times. The 'kiki' fed of what these people called 'chakra'. They were already struggling to heal their host but he was dangerously weak from using his and so the creatures were ravenous. If he used his power to try stun them, they would immediately react, swarming him to feed.

As an fellow creature of nature if they did so would be classed as an violation or attack and he would have instantly overloaded and killed them, leaving their host to die without something he had grown up with since he was a child. His entire clan had these implanted inside them from the moment they could walk, he, like them, grew up with them and learn to control the things. His body not only needed them but relied on them. If he killed them, he would most likely die.

"I can not feed them" he told the dog "I do not have this....chakra, I am not human." He raised his head suddenly "but I have an idea" he turned to look at the group then turned back to the animal "stay here. I have set up safeguards to protect you all" and was suddenly gone.

Without anything to do the white dog moved over to lie between his master and the only female of the group, whining in concern, licking first one then the others face before placing his head on his paws to wait.

*******************************************************************************

Hinata stirred weakly as she felt something wet on her face. Slowly her eyes opened, something fuzzy white in her line of vision “Aka...” she started weakly to hear the excited bark of answer. “What happened?” she asked softly “I thought we were dead.” The dog barked again, his tongue furiously licking her face and she thought she could see something white waving behind him. “Glad to see you’re alive too” she said softly, amused by his enthusiasm.

“What about me?” another voice asked, silky, sexy, amused. Her head snapped up. A figure stood across from her, two figures in masks limp in his grasp. With a casual toss he threw them towards Shino, his kiki swarming over them to feed. The dog barked sharply and the figure spoke again “they were your enemies. I sensed them approaching. Apparently your enemy sent back-up to these others. I could not allow them to get too close.”

“You?!” Hinata said softly “I heard you, I FELT you. You were in my head. WHO ARE YOU?! How did you talk to me like that?!”

The figure approached her, kneeling in front of her and his hand reaching out to touch her cheek gently “there is not time right now to explain but you are my lifemate as I am yours. It means your life means more to me than any other” his hands stroked her cheek lovingly and she felt an warmth growing in her body from that spot, a growing white light that touched any wounds or damage inside and encompassed it.

Slowly her eyes started to clear, the cloudiness sharpening, to become pictures, her true sight.

The first thing that she saw was clear blue eyes, dark and intense, locked to hers.  
The second was tanned skin.  
The third was rugged good looks, around her own age, but those eyes were infinitely older.  
The forth was long sunny blonde hair tied at the nape of his neck with an leather tie.  
The fifth was three long marks on each cheek, resembling whiskers, dark and laying there as clear as day.

Her eyes widened all the way and she whispered, hope, pain, joy, grief all as one in her voice “Naruto?! NARUTO UZUMAKI!??!! IS THAT YOU?!”

****************************************************************************************


	2. 2

****************************************************************************************

He frowned at her "yes my name is Naruto, but it is NOT this....Uzumaki. My name is Naruto Dragonseeker." Hinata blinked at him "what do you mean? You look exactly like I remembered, just...older. How could you not be him?" The dog barked and the man translated, frowning "try your Byukugan" curious over this....ability?

The young woman nodded and he FELT the power surge, concentrating mostly in her eyes, the veins around them and in her temples standing out. He smiled and moved his hand slightly so his thumbs could stroke the visible veins. He made sure that he linked their minds so he could be a shadow in her thoughts while she examined him. He was surprised by her vision. It seemed similar to his own people when he scanned, except more limited by distance. There was also an difference between how they saw. HE saw more in presences, minds. SHE saw bodies, by the power inside them.

His smile intensified, She saw bodies, he saw minds, another way they were lifemates. She was definitely his other half.

He allowed her to examine him thoroughly with her 'sight', still as a statue (or predator ready to pounce) so she could get an full view.

She finally gasped and drew back to look at him fully, her eyesight and the veins\tendons easing back to normal as she stopped her scan of him. "Who, WHAT are you?!"

He drew himself up straight and proud "I am Naruto Dragonseeker, son of Razvan Dragonseeker and Ivory Malinnov, great-nephew of Dominic, warrior Carpathian hunter and child of mother earth, devoted follower of Prince Mikhail Dubrinsky" he relaxed and smiled at her "and YOUR lifemate."

She blinked at him, trying to take it all in. "I don't know what you just said. What is a lifemate? Carpathian?"

He smiled gently "an Carpathian is the name of my race and lifemate is what we are."

"Lifemate?"

"In human terms it means husband and wife, in animal you are my mate."

"Wait" she frowned then protested "I can't be married to you!? I don't know you?! My family already have an husband set up...."

His eyes flashed red and she felt a surge of animal-like fury from him before she blinked and it was gone "your family have no choice, as do you."

When she started to panic he soothed her "you misunderstand me. Lifemates are born for each other, are a part of each others soul-two halves of the one whole. You are a part of me as I am you. You are my light. I have no choice, just like you."

She didn't know what to say to this, opening and closing her mouth a few times. She settled for "what is Carpathian? Is that...your clan name?"

He laughed loudly "no, lifemate, my....clan name is Dragonseeker. My kind take their race name from the region of our world where we are from."

She blinked "I don't understand."

He reached out to touch the item around her neck "THIS is a sign of where you are from, what village. Your village lies in the region of the land of Fire. This makes you an citizen of Fire. MY race lies in the land of Carpathia, making me a citizen of Carpathia, or Carpathian. Do you understand?"

She nodded "what is a...Carpathian? How is your race different to us?"

"We are of the earth. She nurtures and protects us. We can shape-shift and are difficult to kill. We live longer lives than you can imagine. My great-uncle, for instance, is more than one thousand years old." She gasped at this and he went on "our kind is almost extinct, an old enemy has discovered ways to affect us, to try and kill us off. Our women and children are more precious to us then our own lives.

We have discovered in recent years however that certain human women like yourself can and ARE our being born for us. We have some theories, but it is unknown truly why."

"How do you know I am yours?"

"When an Carpathian male grows older, he begins around his adult years to loose the ability to see in color and feel emotions. Many males turn, becoming evil creatures we call vampires, addicted to the rush they feel during a kill. They hurt others-humans AND their own kind-and have to be destroyed to protect others. This is the job of hunters like myself. Some males take the path of suicide when they can not find their mate to prevent such a path.

Males who DO find their lifemate have their colors and emotions instantly restored to them. My parents are lifemates, my great-uncle recently found his. Even my father's twin sister has hers and now I found you."

She blinked at him, unsure of what to say to this.

There was a silence when he spoke again "it is almost dawn. There is an abandoned home nearby. Allow me to carry you and I can get you all there."

Akamaru barked and he nodded at it. After laying hands on the dog briefly he picked up the Inuzuka and placed it over him. Then he gently picked her up, arm under her knees and one behind the back "put your arms around my neck and hang on."

She did so, her face near his ear, her warm breath on it causing a shiver of pleasure down his spine. He moved forward towards the male in the coat. The insects this time didn't attack him. Instead they retreated inside his jacket and did nothing as he picked him up. With the male under his arm and her wrapped in his other, he made his way down the tree branches, going the easy way to make it simpler for the dog and his burden.

Then they were off, moving at the same speed, although she had the feeling he was going slower than he was capable of to make it easier on Akamaru. "So, is my lifemate going to tell me HER name?" he sounded amused. "Oh! I am Hinata Hyuuga of the Hyuuga clan." He smiled at her "I am sooo pleased to meet you finally, Hinata Hyuuga of the Hyuuga clan."

Akamaru barked a few times and he looked half amused, half surprised "so, my lifemate is an PRINCESS?"

"No!" she protested, then blushed "more of an Lady."

He caught images in her mind. Trained to be the heir of her clan, a father's disappointment that she wasn't stronger, more willing to fight and kill. His teeth clenched as he fought back the beast. An lifemate wasn't born for that, they were meant to complete their mates, be the purity and guiding light to their males. The man was trying to turn her into something she was not, something against her nature.

He would show the man just what power and strength could be.

He stilled inside as he caught the edge of other memories. Another male, around her own age, with similar looks. By the sadness mixed with affection mixed with determination she felt for the figure, he first thought he was some sort of twin, he looked incredibly similar. But then he caught images, her father as a younger man, and man his mirror image next to him.

A cousin then, it explained their likeness when their fathers were mirror twins. He searched her memories for the reason behind her feelings, careful to keep his touch light so she wouldn't feel it. What he had found shocked him. The father's twin. He was killed to protect his brother. Not just that but for some reason half her family were treated as slaves, an mark on their forehead allowing them control over them. This sickened him, it felt too much like a vampire controlling another to him.

It sickened his lifemate as well, she hated it and wanted it to end, but was powerless in the clan to do so. Even if she became head of the clan after her father. The older members of the clan held power over the head.

In this case age didn't equal wisdom.

As her lifemate it was his job to grant such a wish, not just his obligation but his pleasure, anything to make her happy. His mother learned from the mages themselves, his father witness to his grandfathers greatest and evilest spells, his aunt able to create spells with only a moments notice. THEY had trained him to 'think on his feet' as they did. If his family couldn't do it, there were people in among his kind who could.

He caught images in her, memories of an youth growing up with her cousin, as close as brother and sister in their childhood, the image of an child boy protecting her fiercely as an older brother should and he agreed whole-heatedly. This child protected his lifemate, her 'big brother', he would treat him as the brother he was to her. He was protecting her from a very young age, even against HIS side of the family, a true warrior in the sense.

The pain she felt towards him didn't make sense, though, so he delved deeper. He searched along the mental path for the answer, and found something. It had to do with her father and his twin, what she remembered and had heard or been told.

Both their mother's had died when they were young, the cousin when they were babies, hers when she was a child, after the birth of her younger sister. Their father's were all they knew, all they had.

When his lifemate was young, barely a child, she was kidnapped by someone from another village. She barely remembered it-just darkness, fear, tied up. Piecing it together he knew they had tied and gagged her, thrown her in a sack and traveled with her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Biting back the beasts urge to roar in fury at his lifemates fear and callous treatment, he was forced to then 'put an leash on it' as through her memories he found out why this village wanted her as he heard muffled talk about 'breeding' her, using his fragile mate to allow them to gain her 'bloodline' ability in their village.

After searching her mind he found his answer. An bloodline ability was an inherited skill in their clan, something only THEY could do. It was the scanning she had done on him earlier. This was the same ability that her clan protected so fiercely and their excuse to place the 'curse seal' or 'caged bird seal' over half their clan-protection they claimed.

Really it was control, the other side of the clan used it as an reason to treat their own family-sometimes brother's and sister's, as crap.

The kidnapper had been stopped-killed-the child taken back. However the village claimed there had been NO plan to kidnap the child and use her as an breeding mare and demanded compensation for their murdered comrade.

He KNEW this village didn't give a crap about any one member, they 'bred', trained and sent kids every day to their deaths, so they couldn't possibly care for one minor death, no they were after something else.

The village demanded the clan heads head.

Instead of the clan head his twin went in his stead, volunteering to save his brother. To protect the bloodline he was sent dead-a body-sealed so the enemy couldn't use his ability in any way. The boy was told by the others of his side that the clan head had his father murdered, that he had used his own twin in order to escape his fate, that he was a coward and they were nothing but slaves.

No matter what she said he began to believe, to hate her. She could still remember the cruel things he said to her that day, but despite the fact he grew aloft and almost cruel to her, she still loved her cousin like a brother. He vowed he would free her cousin, to make her happy and find an equal result, without the slavery. There was SOME way out there to protect the bloodline AND the members-to make them equal.

Fresh memories came, just as painful, but joyous as well. Sitting in the snow, feeling guilty and in pain as members of the other side mocked, yelled and blamed her, bullying her.

Another voice, a boy with HIS blonde hair, HIS blue eyes and HIS facial markings, about a year older than her. The boy defended her even when threatened, even when the other boys beat him up. When he got up and stumbled away, leaving behind his red scarf for her, he felt her emotions. Gratitude, curiosity, the beginnings of a childhood crush.

She decided to find out more about him.

What she saw and learned shocked them both. An orphan he was thrown out of the orphanage from the moment he could walk, forcing the leader to give him an dingy apartment instead. He was forced to fend for himself-do his own shopping, feed and bathe himself-no parental figure, no adult, no family or love or even caretaker. This was bad enough but the village treated him like a monster, like he was nothing more than an animal that needed to be put down. They made their kids avoid him, no one was allowed to talk to him, let alone acknowledge his existence. All he had was one of the teachers at the 'academy' and the leader himself.

The boy was loud and a prankster, but it was just an act, a scream for attention and SOME sort of human contact. In reality she saw an lonely sad child, isolated with an gentle, loving soul just craving someone to turn all those positive emotions on.

While all the other girls sighed over the dark and brooding or clan heirs, she was following the boy from a distance shyly. SHE saw what no one else saw, the true soul of the blonde. He inspired her, no matter what was thrown at him he was determined to be seen for WHO he was, not what they said he was. He struggled, he fought for what he wanted and what he believed in and it inspired HER to also fight. She was going to free her cousin and the others no matter what the council said, she WOULD become clan head and she WOULD change the way they run things!

Then came the day-however reluctant-that her cousin took the first step to come back to her, to tentatively repair the rift between them.

She was so overjoyed! It may not be the relationship of their childhood, but it was a start!

And it was all because of that boy, the blonde, practically pounding into him what was truly important in life. Later she saw her father approach the cousin, a scroll in hand. She learned it was written by the boy's father to him, a goodbye and explanation in one of why he did what he did.

This made her feelings for the boy increase, an child's crush mixed in with an overwhelming gratitude and awe that he would do this for her. He even said he was doing it for her. Sure he seemed completely ignorant of her feelings for him, but his kind heart compelled him to help her. In a world where they were hired or forced to kill, both of them somehow retained their innocence and good heart. The blonde even saw the good in their enemy!

He frowned. The boy had all the markings of an lifemate, but how was it possible? If he wasn't male he would have been convinced he WAS one.

Then she learned the boy's secret, why everyone in the village treated him as an monster. The night of his birth an demon-something called an buji attacked the village. It slaughtered hundreds, no one could stop it. Then the then leader of the village used an powerful seal-an spell-and summoned the god of death, sacrificing his own soul to rip the creatures soul from its body and force it into the body of an newborn baby.

This forced him to suppress his fury at the act. A baby! He used an newborn child! How DARE he take that choice, that life away from someone so innocent! And to make matters worse by allowing the village knowledge! They just ripped away any chance the boy had to have an normal life! He dug deeper, where was this poor boy? If he lived he would take him from the village and raise him hisself. He would give him what his own adopted family gave HIM. Family, an loving family.

More memories of growing up and watching HIM grow. He made SOME friends, including her own teammates, even their teacher whom treated the boy like an younger brother. They were often seen together at a restaurant, the young man smiling indulgently while the boy told tales of his exploits.

The boy then leaving the village for a few years on training with a white haired man. They were seeking the greatest healer their world knew, to heal his friends and take over the position of leader of their village.

Three long years later (to her) he returned, taller, stronger, but still as sunny as ever and her heart lifted in joy at seeing him.

But then not long after his return he was sent out on another 'mission', only to disappear, never to be seen or heard from again.

Ten years ago that was, ten years of fearing for the life of her crush. Was he even alive? Was he an captive somewhere, tortured, afraid, in pain? Did he forget them all? Or had he found someone to finally love him and had settled down with them, perhaps with kids of his own. Even the frantic searching of the leader-having adopted herself as his 'aunt' figure-could find nothing. The other villages didn't have him, the group of criminals hunting him for the creature inside him hadn't and even the two traitors to the village didn't.

It explained her excitement at the sight of him.

He drew out of her mind to send an call out along the private path he shared with his parents _"mother, do you hear me?"_

The answer came after a pause **"I am here, Naruto, what is it?"**

 _"Mother I have found my lifemate"_ he shared the last few hours with her, his thoughts, feelings and what he had learned both in this world and from his lifemate _"have you ever heard of one of these creatures before, these....buji?"_

**"First I am glad you found your destined, my son. Your father feels the same. You will have to bring her home when you are both ready so she can be introduced to the pack. They miss you. Second I am unsure of the existence of such a creature and the possible destructive power they wield. I can look it up, even seek the knowledge of the healer, but chances are they are native of the world you currently inhabit and exist no where else."**

Another voice entered his thoughts "in some circles buji mean high class, like rich humans. Perhaps it means these are High-class animal spirits-or souls-instead of demons. If they have evolved like the lycan or jaguar races, it is possible they may have retained their animal aspects while gaining Carpathian-like abilities. Or they came from experiments similar to what Xavier was doing in our world."

 **"Or some similar form of our wolves"** she added.

"Something else has my attention though"  his father said "Your lifemates memories of the boy. It matches YOU when we found you. If all of them wear this....hiatite was it?....then it makes sense."

He froze inside _"you think that HE and I are the same?"_

"It fits. Somehow you ended up on the other side of the portal."

_"What about this...buji? How was it gone when I was changed? BEFORE I was changed. According to my lifemates memories to extract them means the 'hosts' death."_

"Perhaps you were strong enough to survive. You survived the change because you were unique. Even then we could sense it in you."

**"For now it may be smart to keep this point of theories to yourself. If it is just a matter of coincidence then you will be hurting those too emotionally fragile right now to accept it, including you lifemate. I suggest finding out as much information as you can, on this other version and what they DO know about his disappearance. As well as these other hosts. If possible examine one of them."**

"The same with this 'Caged Bird Curse Seal."  his father added "if you can get your hands on one-so to speak-examine it and send us everything you find. We will try and find a way to either unravel or block it's use."

 _"Thank you mother, father"_ he said gratefully _"I will speak to you once I have something to send."_

** "Be well, son, look after and treat your lifemate well and remember, if you need us, we will be at your side." **

Both were soon gone.

Just as he withdrew from the link, they reached their destination. Opening the door he allowed the dog with his burden to enter first before sliding his lifemate to the seat of an comfy couch and saying "I will return in a minute, cara."

He lead the dog to an closed door where he deposited the boy in the coat on one bed and moved the dogs burden to the other. After an nod towards the blonde, the dog climbed up to curl protectively around his master.

Leaving to return to his lifemate he found her curled up on the couch, asleep. He smiled at this and gently picked her up, taking her to HIS chosen room where he undressed her, marveling at her smooth pale beauty. He then cleaned and redressed her in an long silky nighty, brushed out her blue-black hair before tucking her into the bed he had created himself.

It was made of an dark wood-almost red. A large four posted one the head and foot board were engraved with ancient Carpathian and mage language, both safeguards and words of love and peace. In strategic places were gems embedded. His mother had taught him the importance of gems and crystals for protection and various other uses and he had used that knowledge here, carving out the beds in the wood to place the gems and crystals in in an pattern that ensured an peaceful rest and healing.

The sheets he slid her between and the matching pillow cases were the finest silk and colored red, the blanket spread out on top black. It had an symbol woven into it, an dragon, the same mark his father and all born Dragonseekers bore as an birthmark while behind it was an beautiful Sakura tree, making it appear as though the dragon was perched hidden in the branches, but it was there.

He ensured she was comfortable and safe before he moved to the wall across from her. There he touched the craving in the wall almost lovingly and triggered the hidden panel.

The wall slid back allowing him to slip inside and down the long downwards slope deep underground. Finally he reached an open chamber where he had found the gems and crystals for the bed and approached a spot of rich earth in the very center.

He then summoned his brothers and sisters from their place guarding his back, allowing them their moments of excitement at his find of an lifemate-the knowledge that they would soon have a sister joining their pack.

Given to him by his parents these two males and two females were pups of his parents pack, barely more then juveniles they may be as lethal as him in battle and trained by their parents and his along with him, but in many ways like him they were still kids. They were also brothers and sisters of his adopted sister Skyler and HER lifemate Demitri's own pack, part of the litter. Both of them were among the few lycan\Carpathian crossbreeds now referred to as Guardians-Off-All.

Although the earth here was purer without the signs of infection from the evil mage that was his adopted father's grandfather, it wasn't the same as in their world. There mother earth had made them her children, encasing them in the richest earth, minerals and metals to nourish and protect them as they slept, directly acting to heal any wounds or injuries to them.

Here the earths soul seemed quiet, silent, and he didn't like it. He was used to mother earth's greeting when he rested inside her, her gentle voice soothing him as he slept.

She had adopted him, just as she had his parents, healing him the day his parents had found him after he had apparently saved a child from an vampire and they had been forced to turn him to live.

His mother told him that for some reason mother earth had connected to him deeply-as if he was the embodiment of her spirit-like he was born to be her means of communication to the outside world.

They had seen him fight the vampire singlehandedly, his body rejecting the parasites the vampires inject a victim with to control them almost instantly, the very earth obeying his direction to hide the child protectively and spear the vampire with an lance of metal, giving him enough time to extract its heart and destroy it.

The child had been his now goddaughter, the child of the prince's daughter's husband's adopted brother and wife-who had sneaked away from her carers. It was the prince who had given permission to turn him when his parents had reported the events, the greatest healer his people had there to monitor and help bring him across.

Apparently it had been a struggle, something inside him didn't want them to interfere, it was extremely powerful and fought them all the way. But as he grew weaker, so had it.

His memories had been a sacrifice for his new life, the only thing he remembered was his name-the given name, Naruto.

If he truly was this boy, it explained why it was so difficult and perhaps the loss of memory. The creature inside him-the spirit-hadn't wanted the change. It knew the chances of it surviving was next to impossible. Maybe his lost memories was either it's revenge for it's destruction, or an inevitable result of having a part of him, however it came to be there, ripped away.

He had heard about what happened when Carpathian males turned their lifemates among the Jaguar race. His Great-uncles lifemate was an pure-blood jaguar woman-an princess-and one of his mothers 'adopted' brothers was with an once Jaguar woman, he KNEW they had became one more painfully then most others, but they may have gained the Carpathian aspects, but lost their cats. However one of his other adopted 'uncles' had mated an Lycan and it had changed HIM as well as her, giving him an Lycans guardian form as well as her an Carpathian. And the same went for his Great-uncle and his princess.

Perhaps it had to do with birth, not the actual spirits strength. His Great Aunt and adopted aunts had been born that way with the incredible strength. THEIR animals were royal and had since birth. HIS had been implanted AFTER birth. It was merely an spirit bonded to him by an spell-Jutsu they called it here. The change broke that bond and overwhelmed the spirit.

A sudden sardonic grin split his face. This criminal  organization he had read inside his mate's mind that was hunting the 'vessels' was going to be furious when they learned of its destruction. Whatever they needed all nine for was going to be impossible now.

Even if there was an tiny chance they could ever kidnap him, there was nothing to take, the 'demon' was gone and he was way to powerful for them to hold.

As he moved the earth with his mind for them and settled down to 'sleep' among his brothers and sisters he had one passing thought. Perhaps he should find the others of these....vessels and offer them his protection from the criminals. He may be able to remove the so-called demons and give them back their lives. He shrugged mentally, it wasn't like he couldn't take them. Once his mother got the information on how they functioned from him, she could likely figure out how to safely remove them.

With the 'demons' gone the criminals were no threat.

***********************************************


	3. 3

This time when Hinata awoke it was much more gentle, soothing even. She felt healed, refreshed and even restored. Her first sensation was of warmth surrounding her, softness under her body and head.

She frowned, drowsy and confused. How was she lying in bed? The last thing she remembered was sitting on an comfy chair-a couch-while watching HIM take her teammates to a room.

Male amusement filled her _"you fell asleep, cara mia. I put your teammates in their room to sleep and then put you into OUR bed. I then went to ground and 'slept' myself. I am now hunting for dinner for you all."_

She blinked "how can you be so far away and yet I hear you in my head? You are far away aren't you, I somehow know, I can sense it."

_"It is one of my many abilities as an Carpathian, cara. We can communicate to each other with our minds, distance means nothing to us. All Carpathians have a common path we can communicate on, family have another while lifemates is an entirely separate path altogether. Were I to take blood from your comrades it would be another altogether."_

She blinked, trying to process this "so you all have an kekkai genkai that lets you talk to each other through thoughts, but if you were to take human blood it lets you establish one with that person."

He laughed _"no cara, I can talk to and control any human I wish. All the blood does is allow me to communicate with them on a private path no other can hear unless they were to have shared blood with me or I allow them."_

She frowned "then what about me? You could talk to me from the first moment. How did you know we were there?"

_"You are my lifemate, we were born for each other, two halves of the one whole. We automatically had our own path. You can hear me as I could hear you. If I was communicating with another you CAN listen in if you wish. However for another of my kind to hear YOU, they would have had to shared blood with me and follow that path to you."_

"So can your parents hear me?"

_"Through me, yes. Or if you were to share blood with them-either by they sharing your blood, or they with you. If that was to happen, they would share a private path with you."_

She sensed his sudden distraction, an wolf howl. "What was that?!"

_"Do not fear, cara, that was one of my little brothers alerting me to an human presence nearby."_

"Brother? I thought you said that you only had an sister and THAT was a wolf!" she calmed with an sudden idea "you mean you have a summons?"

_"They are not summons but my little brothers and sisters, Carpathian Wolves. All Carpathians count natures animals as our brothers and sisters. They are my pack and all I have, especially here so far away from home. My familiarall link to nature is why I was able to understand your teammates companion."_

"You mean you can talk to dogs and wolves?!"

_"It's not a matter of TALKING. They don't have the same thought patterns as you or I. Instead they communicate more in images and behavior. You just have to know how to translate it into what."_

Before she could speak an image came to her, close to the ground, vivid colors, ninja's with familiar black cloaks, hoods and blank masks "Hunter Nin! What are THEY doing out here?!"

_"What are these...Hunter Nin?"_

"Elite ninja. They hunt down SS criminals and destroy all trace of them."

_"As in..."_

"Kill them and destroy the bodies. They are responsible for getting rid of those criminals so powerful and violent no one else can."

_"Humm, in that case they are no enemy of mine. I will let them live for now. But if they cross me and mine...."_

She frowned "you can really face an Hunter Nin and survive?" His answer was an derisive snort _"they may be the strongest of your society, but they are human. On the other hand I am an hunter of MY race."_

She blinked "Does that mean you hunt down criminals of YOUR race?"

_"It does. We also protect the secrets of our people and remain hidden from human. Our princes safety is our top priority as the vessel of our race and the secrecy of our kind. The happiness and well-being of our lifemates are of the utmost priority to us."_

"Hunter Nin aren't the strongest of our villages, that's the kages. What do you mean your prince is the vessel of your race?"

_"He holds the power and strength of our race. Everything we are and will be resides in him."_

"What do you mean? I don't understand."

There was an pause before he spoke _"think of it as what you call chakra. Mikhail is the center, the heart of our line. Our race is the pathways. WE are the points. Just as you can block or open the pathways, he can give us strength or take it, manipulate it."_

"So all your strength and power comes from HIM?"

_"No cara. We each have our own strength or weakness, but HE can change that. For instance, our greatest healer is also Mikhails right-hand man and bodyguard. During an battle with the criminals off OUR race, Gregori had one of his hands severed. Using the power of his blood, Mikhail forced Gregori to regrow the limb in mere seconds."_

"You mean he can regrow limbs!? Even severed?!"

His voice was amused _"we are remarkably hard to kill, my lifemate. However even we cannot regrow them normally. Gregori was able because he was close to the prince AND a healer. Without Mikhails manipulation he would not have succeeded."_

"So if your prince can manipulate them like that, how do you have criminals? Surely he would use that connection to stop them."

_"He doesn't work like that, cara or no one would trust him. I told you that we each have our own level of strength and weaknesses, when a vampire rejects our ways and turns evil, he is severed from that link, living off his own power and what he can steal. Since human blood is our strength and weakness, they murder and torture them. For both their-and our-protection Hunters like myself are needed to stop them. Can you imagine, cara, forced to kill brothers, uncles, best friends or even childhood friends because they gave in to the darkness inside them without an lifemate to anchor them?"_

"What exactly do you mean by lifemate? I don't understand."

_"An lifemate is the other half of our soul. We believe that a soul is born perfect but on the point of birth is split in two, the pure innocent half goes to the female, the dark animal side the males. When our race was more plentiful there used to be an ceremony where when a female came of age the unattached males from all over the world would gather to see if they were her lifemate, but now with our race close to extinction and humans being found as our mates, we are forced the look all over the planet for her. Even then it may be years or even centuries before she is even born."_

"How..? How do you know when you found her? How do you know I am yours?"

 _"As they grow past maturity an male begins to loose their ability to see in color. Everything fades to grey. We loose our ability to feel emotion, everything but those picked up from others minds-but this is not our own. There are other signs but the most obvious being someone who both arouses our lust and love."_ This made her blush and he went on _"for each of us there is only one lifemate, no one else. What I feel for everyone else is an mere shadow of my desire and love for you. I will NEVER look at another woman the way I do you, never feel even a shadow of the emotion and desire for them that I do for you."_

She blinked "but why? Why me? How can you love me when we've never even met before?!"

_"Why you as a human? Our race is dying out, very few children survive their first year and if they do, they are male. Our woman are so few. For some reason some human women are compatible with our males. Many of these women have successfully became one of us, a few have even gave birth. Only gifted women can be lifemates. Women with physic abilities, gifts. YOUR..... Byukugan and ability to manipulate your chakra makes you one of them."_

Before she could question again there was a noise outside the door. Amusement came back to her _"your teammates are worried about you. See them so they are assured I didn't molest you or enslave you to me." The amusement increased "it seems the one in the coat is insisting to the other you are safe and untainted, even though he has yet to see for himself."_

"Their names are Shino Abruhame and Kiba Inukuza, and the dog is Akamaru, Kiba's companion and why can't they get in? I would have thought one of Shino's kiki would have came in by now."

The amusement increased _"I set safeguards around your room to protect you. No one or nothing can get in without my allowing them, including any type of insect or bug-let alone a dust molecule."_

"Safeguards?"

_"Seals if you wish to use your terms. Think of it as in a safeguard is a seal we can create with OUR type of chakra. We can use physical seals if we wish for something stronger-or just use our power, like your hand signs but with just a thought. My mother was taught by a powerful mage-I suppose you might call them sages-so she taught me everything she knew. My FATHER's grandmother herself was extremely powerful and an ancient line, but add to that his grandfather also being mage....Well, you can imagine."_

She could. A child of a sage-born and powerful line. Add to that an sage-trained. No wonder he was so confident. He would be more powerful than any of the kages!

The door rattled and she looked up.

 _"You're teammates are impatient"_ he grinned in his mental voice _"see them, assure yourself they are unharmed from your ordeal."  When she moved to rise he added "you may wish to change."_

Looking down at herself she squeaked and pulled the sheet up to cover herself. His laughter echoed in her head, causing her to frown and send her disapproval and anger back to him through her mind. This only made him laugh louder.

 _"Where are my clothes!? Why am I....?!"_ she was stuck between anger at him for the audacity to change her WHILE she was unconscious, embarrassment at him seeing her less-than-perfect body and confusion about if he SHOULD be seeing her that way.

His voice came back confusion _"why do you think you are not attractive? You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. In my eyes, everyone else pales in comparison."_

She blushed "you don't mean that."

 _"Of course I do"_ his voice in her head was completely honest _"lifemates can not lie to each other. Your hair is long an untamed, an black as dark as night but under moonlight it has an blue shine to it that is as unique as you. It is soft and silky, I want to lie beside you and spend hours just running my fingers through it."_ She sensed his breath catch in his lungs as dark desire ran through him _"feel it move across my body like teasing fingers as I make love to you."_

Before she could comment he went on _"your skin is pale, like cream. Just looking at it makes me want to taste it-see if skin CAN taste like it appears. Your eyes are the palest shade of lilac, not quiet white but not quiet colored either. They make you look unique-even among your clan, showing those who look into it long enough that you are both warrior and woman. Strong and yet feminine. Gentle and kind, but with an inner core of steel. You are the very embodiment of everything a woman should be, my perfect match._

_This is all without the very perfection of your body, the shear artistic curves and the way it fits so perfectly into mine when I was holding you."_

"I....I'm not beautiful. I'm s..small and scared and unable to move fast enough or am strong enough. I can't produce the right jutsu's when I'm supposed to and....."

 _"That's your father talking, my love"_ he gently interrupted her _"your father wants you to be more.....masculine, not feminine. He obviously wanted an heir, not daughters. My race values our women, ALL of them. More than that-we value every one of our children as the treasures they are-no matter their sex or appearance. Your father lost his wife, he should value his children as a part of them, not put them down for not doing what is against their nature. MY people, especially my mother and father and our prince, will treat you as you deserve, not what others think you should. My parents especially will welcome and love you. They will probably teach you to be a mage too, if it's your wish."_

"But....I'm not like you. I can't do what you can!"

_"Not now but once you become fully into my world, you will become that and more."_

"What do you mean?"

_"Not now, my love, all will be explained in time. I left you clothes on the end of the bed. Dress in them and go see your teammates. I will return shortly with food for you all."_

Before she could form another thought he had withdrawn from her mind, confusing her with the feeling of loneliness at his distance. Without his presence in her head she felt bereft, as if he meant so much to her in just that time since she first felt him. Now he was gone she felt so lonely and even a little betrayed by his silence, which didn't make sense. She didn't know him, he was another race, so why did his withdrawal hurt so much?!

 _"We are lifemates"_ he was back _"two halves of the whole. Once those two are reunited, it hurts them to be parted in any way again. And this will only get stronger the more we communicate this way and are in physical contact. I apologize lifemate, I will remain, at least in part to ease your discomfort."_

Then he was gone again, only THIS time he left behind a part of him, like a shadow in her mind.

Determined to do her own thing she climbed out of the big bed and walked around until she found the pile of clothes he left her. There was an ninja-standard bra, underwear, an hair brush, shoes an young lady would wear and-her breath caught in her throat-an yukata. As an heir to such an important clan in Hidden Leaf she was trained not just as an ninja but also a lady, so she was also trained to serve ceremonial tea, walk and talk like an lady and wear kimono's and other such traditional clothing, but this.....this was both beautiful and sexy.

The yukata was silky, an dark blue it was almost black with sakura blossoms over it, was with an pale violet obi and Koshihimo that would compliment her eyes. The juban was an pale violet also, the Date-jime was an darker violet-almost purple, the korin-belt black.

Her eyes widened though at a thought. The yukata was obviously expensive. "Are you....are you rich?"

He seemed amused _"when it suits me."_

"What does that mean?"

He sighed _"Carpathians live a long long time, lifemate. When you live so long alone you accumulate a lot of items, money, artifacts, that sort of thing. Carpathians do not care about material wealth or possessions, but it CAN prove useful at times-like when needing to seem more human. Whatever we have as Carpathians we willingly share with each other, including money. The only thing we do not share is our lifemates."_

"So if one of you is rich, he will share it with everyone else?"

_"Yes. SEVERAL of our kind are more than what you call rich. Even then we have members who are highly talented in certain fields. Business Men, artists, sculptors, Gem Callers."_

"What is that? Gem Callers?"

_"They are what it sounds like. They can go into a cave or cavern with a type of gem in mind and find the most beautiful or rarest of stones. They can ask the earth to give it to them, any sort, and they will find it. These Carpathians can then fashion it into jewelry, necklaces, earrings, anything and they are highly prized and sought after."_

 To Hinata it sounded like an jutsu of some sort. Call gems to them and the earth just...gives it to them...?

_"It is not an jutsu. It is an talent born into them, like your eyes."_

She understood. All ninja had the ability to use the five elements of the earth. It was how ninja like the famous Copy-nin Kakashi Hatake were able to use so many types. However every ninja was stronger in just one then the others, so they normally specialized in that one type. Using the other four could drain them of chakra too fast.

If she looked at it in those terms, these 'Gem Callers' were born with an gekaki genkai of the earth, allowing them to sense the caves or caverns with the gems they needed and then manipulate the earth to be able to draw them out.

Then they were able to use this talent to create unique jewelry, which got them A LOT of money understandably.

_"Check under the clothes."_

Digging under her hand closed over something warm and metal. Pulling it out she gasped.

The chain was thin and silver, the links so small and many it must have taken A LONG TIME to link every one. They were linked together, giving the illusion of an solid rope of silver, but she could see them each individually and was awed by the delicate work. Hanging from the chain was an solid stone, shaped into an flame, but not just any  flame, a candle flame, the symbol of Hyuuga. The stone itself was dark, but when she moved it around in the light she saw reds and oranges, as if the stone itself held an flame prisoner inside it.

_"The stone is called an fire opal and is rare here. It protects the wearer from danger, helps enhance power and thoughts and feelings. As long as you wear that stone I will be with you, even when I can not physically and it will help you communicate with me with your thoughts."_

"So I can talk to you like this no matter how far apart either of us are?"

 _"Yes my lifemate. No matter the distance or situation. And if you ever need me, I'll be there"_   not that he ever planned on ever being separated from her now he had found her. However it would be good insurance of their connection.

As her fingers closed over the stone it seemed to warm to her touch, sending her a feeling of comfort, love and safety. It felt like the stone was protecting her and as her fingers curled around it, she was shocked when it seemed to resonate with her chakra. It was almost like it was created just for her-not just shaped and chosen.

At that moment she could understand how his people could do so well fianically. If the Gem Callers' could create work like this for individuals then the people wanting to purchase them would probably pay any price for it. She could imagine an rich man paying a fortune for an simple necklace on its own because it felt like the woman he loved, or finding an beautiful ring made just for his girlfriend.

She could imagine his work being highly sought after in Hidden Leaf, not to mention other villages. He would be rich in weeks.

_"As I said, Carpathians care nothing for material wealth except for making SOME THINGS easier."_

Without hesitation she looped the chain around her neck then began to get changed "how do I get through your seals?"

_"The safeguards are there for your protection. They are set to keep anyone but you or I from getting inside your room. But it is NOT for keeping you in, just them out."_

"So?"

 _"Just open the door and walk out. You may feel a moment of.....discouragement, but no harm will come to you, or the others if you LET THEM IN. Go, talk, I will return with food shortly"_ and he was again gone, except that small presence she felt inside her mind.

Running the brush through her hair a few times she finished, took a deep breath and stepped to the door.

The minute she touched the door knob she felt it, an suffocating almost oppressive feeling, making her gasp and quickly step back. It was almost like stepping into the aura of danger. However she DID notice something. While it felt like a threat to her, it didn't feel like it was actually real. Like someone was threatening her, but wasn't intending or going to actually carry it out. Like 'stay away' not 'stay away or I'll kill you'.

With determination she stepped forward again and grabbed the knob turning and swinging it open and quickly stepping through.

On the other side stood her two teammates, obviously unharmed and Akamaru. They also wore new clean clothes, not as expensive or flash as hers but good quality and make, Akamaru's fur thick and shining as if the male had carefully washed and brushed it out himself.

The three blinked at each other silently for a few seconds in mutual surprise before Kiba cried her name and launched forward as if intending to hug her.

However Akamaru was there first, big body between them as he excitedly started licking her face in greeting.

Hinata laughed at it and let him, despite the sudden wolf growl in her mind. His 'brothers and sisters' could show their displeasure all they liked, Akamaru was an teammate and deserved her time and attention. They had grown up together, almost died together many times, he was as much 'pack' as she was.

All four of them were a pack long before now, the nin-kin having always had a soft spot for the violet eyed girl, even in junior grade, even afterwards in Ninja Academy. With his acceptance and protection of her came Kiba's followed by socially inept Shino.

The three humans had always been looked at as the misfits of Kohona, along with Naruto Uzumaki, Shikamaru and Choji, Naruto more so with his pranks and tricks.

"Hinata am I glad to see you!!" Kiba yelled "Akamaru's saying some strange shit and on top of that I don't remember anything that happened. Neither does Shino."

"My Kiki say we were saved by someone else, someone not human" the Abrahume said, his head cocking to the side just very slightly. Hinata recognized his version of either peeved off or confused, it could go either way with him "my kiki confirm what Akamaru said."

"What did he say?"

"That this guy turned up in time to save our hides, healed us and brought us here, that he claimed to be your husband."

Shino nodded "my kiki told he was ruthless in battle and killed Hunter-Nin with no problem, but treated you like spun glass. That he didn't once take his eyes of you while he was there and when he healed us he obviously did us first because it was what YOU would want."

Hinata motioned them to follow and lead them to the couch where they sat down together "it's all true. Someone rescued us and healed us and he wasn't human. He said he's from a race called Carpathians and his clan is called Dragonseeker. His parents are both above Sanin level power, Kage even. He summoned an storm from a distance and directed it to us. The lightening killed two of the enemies."

Kiba frowned at her "what about what he said about you being his wife?"

She nodded "he called it lifemates. He said his kind are born with another person being part of them, like one soul in two bodies, and I'm his other half. To him, that makes us married, more than married really." Kiba frowned "but your father already has an marriage arranged, doesn't he?"

"Yes, but I think he has something planned." Kiba looked alarmed "you don't think he plans on hurting your father or the Hyuuga Elders?!" Just as Hinata herself began to panic, Shino spoke "that would not be an logical decision." The two looked at him "what do you mean?"

"If he harmed the Hyuuga Council or your father, he would not only lose of your favor, but risk Hidden Leaf itself moving against him. That sort of behavior would not get you mated." They saw the logic in this "then what do you think he plans?"

Shino eyed her clothes "he has something or can give them something no one else can. Something he thinks they will willingly give you to them to gain. Do you have any idea of what that can be?" Hinata thought for a while. Kiba frowned at her "what about money? There's our clothes..."

Hinata shook her head "he said his kind doesn't care about money or material wealth. He said even though some of them are incredibly wealthy, they share that with each other if the others need it." She reached up and grasped the charm from around her neck "he said some of their people are like the Hunter-nin while others are popular artists, sculptors and that sort. And the others..." she faded off and gripped it harder before looking at them "he said they were called Gem Callers."

They looked at her "Gem Callers?"

She reluctantly opened her hand to show them "they have an gekaki genkai that lets them sense gems and crystals and they can pull them out of earth and stone by thought alone. They can then make jewelry out of them for certain people. He said people pay these people a fortune just for one of these. I can see why" her fingers of their own accord curled around the stone again.

"Hinata, WHAT HAPPENED?" Kiba asked.

She told them EVERYTHING, leaving nothing out no matter how embarrassing. These were her teammates, people who for more than ten years she had grown up with, faced danger with, bled with, lived with and almost died with. That made them even closer than family, then they were with you unlike their own clans and parents. Holding anything back-on a mission or otherwise no matter how embarrassing-could lead to discovery, injury, or even death.

Afterwards there was silence as the two males processed what she had told them, then Akamaru told HIS version.

"So he can command storms, summon thunder and lightening and manipulate it directly. That is unusual to be able to control wind and lightening at the same time without it costing too much chakra." Shino said this "and he appeared to be  identical to the missing Naruto Uzumaki? I do not know whether to be suspicious or releived he is alive."

"He said his name is Naruto Dragonseeker" Hinata said softly "and when I looked at him with my Byukugan he was...different. I've never seen that sort of tantric system before. Whatever he is, it is not chakra he uses. It's like...." she hesitated, thinking "like he's a part of the earth. When Naruto-kun returned from training with Jiriaya-sama his charkra was kind of like this, but not so advanced. This is completely different. It's like his chakra has been replaced. And if this IS Naruto-kun he no longer bares the nine-tailed."

"Hum" Shino looked thoughtful "so if this IS Naruto Uzumaki his chakra has been replaced, the nine tailed either removed or destroyed-which I don't see how-and he's lost his memories. Perhaps the fox was extracted and these people he calls mother and father found him and saved his life. However the trauma of the extraction destroyed his charka pathways and memories and the ones who found him were forced to change his system, somehow link him to the pure energy of the earth to save him. He was trained by Jiriaya-sama in the ways of an Sage, it is possible this couple were some sort of advanced form of that and had to merely....push his body into an advanced version of this like theirs."

"What about what he said about their prince? If he DOES have an race as well as clan, if his 'rescuers' were just coincidence, how could he have an ruler?"

"Either it was part of some sort illusion he has built up to cope with what has happened or...."

"Or?"

"Or there is a race out there other than humans who have stayed secret for centuries from every other mortal race until now. Who have stayed hidden from us no matter what happened with no contact with humanity, even figures such as the Sage Of Six Paths and the snake Sannin have no idea they exist."

Kiba frowned at him "what are the odds of that ever happening?"

“Ninja are taught to be inconspicuous and fade into a crowd, to disappear. If these.....Carpathians are truly connected to and a part of the earth, it IS possible they can use this to their advantage and not only appear fully human and plain, but disappear completely when they wish to” he looked to Hinata “you said he claimed he can control human minds.” When Hinata nodded he went on “then anyone discovering them simply has to be affected by such. If they are discovered, they simply remove or bury the memory.”

Kiba frowned "but do YOU think that is possible?"

"It is the logical explanation. For a race powerful enough to survive this long among ninja and not be found, as well as be able to actually....change another race into their own...." Hinata spoke "he said their race is almost extinct. That their women are rare and their children rarely survive their first year and even then are usually male. He implied I could become one of them. Could....could their ability to change someone into their kind be some sort of adaptation to make up for the lack of children?"

Shino looked at her "it is possible. Every being or race has an inborn need to procreate. If this race has started loosing this ability, it is possible over the centuries they have....evolved with the ability to procreate through transformation instead."

"So if I became one of them, I would have to choose someone else to change instead of giving birth?" Something in her head spoke to her "no, I could still have children, but the risk of miscarriage or loosing them in the first year is higher. They discovered the source of the problem, just are trying to find a way to solve it."

The two looked at her "he's talking to you now?"

She nodded "he's hunting right now for us. But I can feel him there and he can talk to me when he wants."

"Perhaps he should return to Hidden Leaf with us" Shino said "no one knew Naruto Uzumaki better than The Hokage, Jiriaya sama and Iruka sensei. If this truly IS him, even with memory  loss, they would know."

"Not necessarily" Kiba said "if he lost ALL his memories except the basic stuff, then the ones who found him would have had to kind of rebuild him again. Since he would have no memories, he wouldn't act the same, since he doesn't KNOW who he was, just who he is."

"That is, if he IS who and what he says he is, and not an spy or enemy."

"What do you mean?"

"Five years ago, The Lady Hokage revealed the truth behind Naruto Uzumaki's heritage and why it was hidden from all. An enemy could have learned this. They could send an spy disguised as him, with this big back story about not being human and Hinata being his destined wife in order to get in Kohona. They could even be after the Forths secret jutsus and any information on him that could prove disastrous for the village."

"But if they were going to send someone disguised as him, they would not only try and have him act and behave like the one we know, but claim to be him. This guy's the opposite, he doesn't act like him and he denies he is him. Having the spy deny he is who they want us to believe he is doesn't make sense. We could just say "ok" and believe him, then he'd be denied what it's his mission to get."

"And what about what he can do? The ability to call and control storms, being able to overpower and kill Hunter Nin, he understood Akamaru, he carried us both with no problem, Akamaru said he changed shape, the fact he's hunting WITH wolves not to mention he's talking to me in my head right now."

"Controlling storms could be an new jutsu or even an kekkai genkai, to overpower Hunter nins and carry us could be someone has stolen The Hokage's strength technique and he trained in it, the wolves could be trained, tame or summons. Akamaru could have seen an jutsu in this ability to shape change" Akamaru growled at this last one. As if he didn't know when an jutsu was being used! That was NO jutsu-he really was the jungle cat! "As for him understanding Akamaru, he could have some Inuzuka blood in his line."

Akamaru growled and barked something. Kiba translated "that wasn't an jutsu. When an ninja changes shape it's just an illusion, an genjutsu, they still smell human. HE was all cat. He LOOKED like one, SMELLED like one, BEHAVED like one...He WAS an wild cat."

"And what about the fact he can talk to me in my mind? I don't know of ANY jutsu or bloodline that lets you do that or someone would have taken advantage of it by now. I mean a team of ninja able to talk to each other with their minds?! Could you imagine the advantages of that?"

"That COULD be either an side effect of the demons removal-if it IS Naruto Uzumaki-or some new jutsu for the enemy. Every jutsu out there is not known, it would make sense this one would be undiscovered until now."

"Would he even come to Hidden Leaf with us? I mean if he lives and is a part of nature, runs with wild wolves and takes the form of animals, would he come? I mean if he was the sort to live around others, why is he traveling alone when he has sisters and parents?"

"The Carpathian race-especially males-are usually solitary creatures, at least until we find our lifemates. We are possessive and protective of our women and having unattached males, human or otherwise, around our lifemates is incredibly difficult. Of course I am coming with you to your village, I still need to seek your hand through your father and....persuade him it is in their best interests to dissolve this sham of an arranged marriage" his voice was suddenly amused "do not fear, cara, I can be civilized if the situation calls for it, just as I can be deadly."

There, standing in the doorway with an large steaming box, was the blonde man, alone.

With their attention on him he stroad into the kitchen portion of the cabin and placed the box down on the counter and stepped back, motioning her to it.

Curiously she moved forward and grasped the lid, raising it cautiously when she saw the symbols written on the sides. Only for the heavenly aroma of cooked meal, vegetables and even noodles to reach her nose and set all four of their stomachs growling. And the food was still as hot as if just cooked. This made her realize why the seals on the sides, the box was preserving the heat of the meal so it wouldn't become cool before he returned to them!

But this confused her, she expected him to bring back meat, maybe an deer or something, NOT an full almost banquette for the four of them.

At her look he laughed, an rich sexy sound that confused her by making her blush "you and your teammates had used a lot of chakra in your battle and are still recovering from your wounds even with my healing you. The meat we caught would not have been enough to produce the energy. You need vegetables and variety. So I took my kills to an nearest restaurant and...persuaded the head chefs to cook an variety of dishes for you. There is various meals to choose from, even something for your teammates companion."

Touched she began to unpack the meals on the table for her teammates to chose from, placing plates and chopsticks down for them and even placing Akamaru's (which was mostly meat and some vegetables in a broth) in a bowl on the floor for him.

Once done they sat down to eat, noticing how the blonde didn't join them. Not even for the ramen. And his eyes never left her. If this WAS Naruto, he had forgotten his love of the noodle dish, something they thought would NEVER happen.

When Hinata asked if he would join them, he just smiled at her and said "I have already fed, lifemate, thank you for your concern."

"Fed?" she questioned "do you eat human food?" He shook his head "human food is undigestable to us. If we have to we can manage SOME vegetables and water or juice, but we will need to get it out of our bodies as soon as possible or it hurts us the longer inside."

"So if I become like you, I won't be able to eat human food anymore. What DO you eat?" He just looked at her without speaking.

"What's wrong?" she asked, concerned. "Don't ask questions you may not like the answers to" he said unemotionally. This took the three aback. What sort of answer was that? What could he do or eat that would possibly offend or scare them? Akamaru growled and Kiba's eyes narrowed. But before he could speak the blonde did "no. I do not eat meat or flesh. To an Carpathian eating the meat or flesh of others is...distasteful. To us, it's as gross as you would see eating human flesh."

The three frowned. Then what DID he eat? No meat of any kind would normally class his people as vegans. But he already said that they can't digest vegetables and juices, so no plant matter, yet he had already fed? There was a low hum from Shino, his bugs answering only for him. Shino frowned but said in an even voice "you drink human blood."

The other two's heads snapped to him "what? How did you....?!"

"My kiki told me. They said those Hunter-nin he fed them to restore us were nearly completely drained of blood." He looked at the blonde "That was how you got them too us without problem. You drained them nearly completely so they would still be alive when my kiki drained them."

The blonde nodded, looking at Hinata "I told you, humans are our strength, AND our weakness."

"You're a....vampire!!??" Kiba panicked, but the blonde's eyes flashed red and he snapped "DON'T CALL ME ONE OF THOSE BASTARDS!!! I AM NOT AN TRAITOR OF OUR PEOPLE OR AN CRIMINAL !!!" They froze "wait, what? Vampires are criminals and traitors? Are you saying....vampires ARE REAL?!"

"Yes and no. Vampires are Carpathian males who have chosen to give up their souls for the momentary thrill of a kill. Carpathians do not harm or kill their prey, choosing instead to either wipe their memory or blur it, make it something ...pleasant. We very rarely drain our prey to death, instead taking small amounts from more than one. Vampires are holy evil, they revel in death, destruction and murder. They kill indiscriminately, men, women, children, they turn family members on each other and sit back to watch, they kill human and Carpathian alike. They want to control or destroy everything around them.

They are completely corrupt, egotistic and creating those stories of myths and legends are a way to both glorify their natures, and hide at the same time. If humans find out about us, they only see those evil creatures, not our true souls-just as you both have" both blushed and looked ashamed at the same time "because of this manipulation, there is a group calling themselves the Morrison Society, who hunt us. They have the stories and truth jumbled and in most cases are harmless to us, but there have been cases....."

"Like what?"

"They almost murdered our princes lifemate while she was human. If it wasn't for some desperate work on our healers part we would have lost her-then our prince right along with her, dooming our race. Due to an betrayal they got their hands on the prince's brother and tortured him before burying him alive. If it wasn't for his lifemate finding him and nursing him back to health, he would have died. As it is he is barely sane on the best of risings, and can not be around cities or towns, or groups of people. One of our healers' brothers has adopted brothers and a sister. One of those 'brothers' found his lifemate recently. HER husband had been murdered by them and while she was pregnant they tried to kill her. There are other cases. ANYONE they see is different is one in their eyes and targeted for murder. Imagine an human child deciding to dress differently to everyone around him. He's gone the next day, a victim of them. Just because he decided to dress differently. Unfortunately for them, they are being manipulated and controlled by the very vampires they think they hunt. Vampires can seem like normal or even beautiful people."

All three exchanged looks. They were aware of how different Naruto Uzumaki had been, standing out more than even them. Could these Hunters had singled him out and killed him? Or tried to kill him and was so severely wounded the ones he called parents had changed him to save his life? His blood-loss and damage could have caused oxygen loss to the brain, causing memory loss. The two Carpathians had been able to save and heal him and bring him back to 'normal', however the damage was done and they couldn't rebuild what was already lost.

"How do we know an vampire when we encounter one then?"

Something flashed in his eyes and he said evenly "pray to any of your gods you never do. However no matter how beautiful or appealing they make themselves, no matter how innocent or friendly they seem, your survival instincts will tell you you are in serious danger. You Shinobi have an finely tuned sense of it, no matter what your eyes tell you, believe only your senses. They can also look like someone you trust or love, so if something feels wrong, do not ignore it. But DO NOT confront it, Carpathians are damned near impossible to kill, but an vampire is cunning and maniacal, can you imagine all that evil and hate in an body that is nearly impossible to kill, who would do ANYTHING to survive? Even use your teammates on you? Or make anyone you know or love into mindless slaves. Human minds as so easy for them to twist. This is one reason Hunters are alone, if there is no one you care for, there is no one the vampires can use to hurt you."

"Kiba frowned "if your kind is so impossible to kill, how do the Hunters do it?"

"I said NEARLY impossible to kill, not is. An Hunter has to remove the heart and destroy it with fire, then the body. However vampires are cunning and will try anything to take you down with them, that is if they can't escape first. Their blood acts like acid, eating away at anything the instant it touches it-flesh especially-they have parasites in their blood they use to identify each other and protect the host" he looked at Shino "much like your hive. The older ones are known for using the younger newly turned ones as cannon fodder to where an Hunter down and injure him before attacking to try finishing him off and will only expose himself if he is entirely confident he has every advantage. They are master manipulators and those being used are often unaware of it in the first place. An vampire has only one real weakness."

"What?"

"Ego. They think they should be seen as gods and looked on with awe, especially by women. This has been used against them a few times, yet so many of them still believe an woman is too pure to plunge an knife in their chest."

Kiba snorted "idiots. Woman are totally capable of it!" Ignoring Hinata's glare at him. "But to an Carpathian, women are seen as beautiful, pure, innocent and incapable of such acts. We are raised to believe our women are the light to our dark souls, beautiful fragile things that it is our duty to guard, guide and love. Even as twisted as they are, vampire believe this still."

"So because of this belief, many vampires underestimate women" Shino supplied and he nodded "My father's twin is female and an Hunter, alongside her lifemate. My mother herself is one and both her and my father trained me. My great Aunt is an skilled warrior. A few other women have taken it up under necessity and even Carpathian-born woman have gifts that help protect them."

"Like what?"

"Our greatest healers' young sister is an lead singer of an band. Her voice alone can make you feel the pure emotion of whatever she sings. But she can use that voice also as an weapon. Whether it is as making you unable to do other than feel or creating webs of music note to immobilize someone, it is her strength. The very earth answers them. One female can heal the earth. She can walk through an area devastated by contamination or destruction and plants spring up from wherever she walks. Trees heal, grass grows and earth is renewed."

To the three humans and animal, this sounded like an bloodline. After all, didn't the First Hokage have an similar such ability. He could cause trees to grow, even in barren ground. He DID create the forest surrounding Hidden Leaf to protect it from enemies. The blonde cocked his head at them "interesting." Then there was those Sound Four during the Chunin Exams. Didn't one use music as a weapon?

"Humm" he said thoughtfully "perhaps some of your 'bloodline' abilities originated along the same lines as ours."

"What do you mean?"

"Mixed blood."

"How? What exactly do you mean?" Shino blinked "you know of other races other than yours and human?!"

"Five, although one is only new. The Carpathians, The Mage, The Jaguar, the Lycan and The Guardians Of All."

"You are Carpathian and you told Hinata your father was Mage. Doesn't that make you half and half?"

"No, Carpathian. My mother was one and even though my father was born Mage, the grand aunts changed him. He bares the gifts of an Mage, but is fully Carpathian. Well..." he cocked his head thoughtfully as if trying to figure something out "he was born one third Mage, One Third Carpathian and the final third human, but the grand aunts turned him fully in order to hopefully give him the strength to escape imprisonment."

"What do you mean?"

My Great grandmother was fully Carpathian. She was imprisoned by my Great grandfather who was Mage and he murdered her lifemate. Somehow he kept her alive long enough to produce three children, the great aunts and my fathers father. Then he murdered her and turned his purpose on them."

"Why? What purpose?"

"He was mad, insane, jealous of our kinds long evity. He wanted to be immortal even though NOTHING is immortal. So he was using their blood, feeding off his own children like leeches, to prolong his life." To them, except the blood thing, it sounded like a certain Sannin. "What happened?"

"The grand aunts managed to help their brother escape who fled. Later he fell in love and had kids his own."

"Your father and his twin."

"Yes. While they were still children their mother was murdered and their father disappeared. They ended up in their grandfather's care and can you guess what happened?"

"He used them."

"Father may only have been part Carpathian, but he had all the protective urges and feelings of an full. Their grandfather taught them then used them to plan, spells, strategies, anything his rotting brain couldn't come up with then using them as his own. My father protected his sister, taking her punishments, claiming her ideas as his own-not to make himself look good, but to make his sister look useless to their grandfather. It was a type of protection, if the evil man thought she was useless, he would throw her out, keeping her from his influence and torturing her to live off her blood. It was all he could do to save her from that life.

For years everyone thought my father had turned and joined their grandfather in his evil plans-even his twin-especially when women were popping up, HIS children, but nothing could be furthest from the truth."

"What was it?"

"When the grand aunts turned him, hoping to give him the strength to escape, they removed any hope of getting children from him. Carpathian males are only sexually aroused or desire our lifemates. So the evil Mage planted four fragments of himself inside him and possessed his body and mind temporarily for certain amounts of time. He used this to seduce gifted women and sleep with them to get them pregnant, hoping to get the perfect child he could use, taking some but cruelly rejecting the others."

"The women and children turning up as his" Shino murmured. He nodded "even now he has no idea how many children he has through this act. So far there is only four girls known, three who have lifemates. The Mage wouldn't have allowed any sons-afraid they could destroy him-so chances are there is more that that in sisters I have out there."

"How did your father escape?"

"The Mage kept father starved and weak, chained and imprisoned while he fed off his blood. However when the location of his lair was discovered he was forced to move him and his things to another location not as secure as before. Father managed to escape and wanted to kill himself while he had the chance to escape his control, but my mother found him, almost dead. She nursed him back to health again and with our healer was able to remove the fragments so he would no longer be able to control him." He drew himself up proudly "no Dragonseeker has EVER turned vampire, and never shall it be."

He relaxed then "it is almost dawn and you four need more sleep. You may be fully healed, but your....chakra needs to recharge before you return to your home. Another day or two and you shall be ready to return."

"And you're coming too, aren't you?" Hinata asked to receive an nod of answer. The three humans and one animal quickly finished their meals, cleaning up the dishes left before Hinata was lead to her room by the blonde. He tucked her in and kissed her forehead gently, murmuring "sleep deep until the next rising, my love" causing her to blush deeply at this attention, wondering if she should kiss him back.

He drew back and looked at her, smiling "do not feel obligated to do anything, lifemate. Just because I do something, doesn't mean you have to do the same. When you feel confident or comfortable enough, know you do not need permission to touch me."

Hinata understood and nodded "it's just....." she started to stutter "I've never touched someone like that before. I wouldn't know what to do. What if I do something wrong? Touch somewhere wrong?"

He smiled gently at her and she had the feeling he was incredibly pleased with the fact she had never touched another like that before. "You are my lifemate. My body belongs to you, just as yours belongs to me. If your mind or body tells you to touch me somewhere, go ahead. You will only learn by doing so. I assure you, even though I am not human, our needs and desires are the same."

Hinata had the feeling he was referring to sex wise. His widening grin proved it and made her heart ache at the same time, it was so Naruto Uzumaki. His smile faltered at her thought and something flashed red in his eyes "even if I WAS the one you crave remember this, he no longer exists." For just a second fear went through her, both at the fire in his eyes and the very thought of his death being real. But then it was gone in realization. He had said 'no longer exists', not dead!

Did that mean he WAS Naruto-kun? Did it mean he remembered but didn't want to? Like what had happened was too traumatic. No, he would have known and remembered them, Kiba and he had been friends before. Maybe he hadn't remembered, just knew something was wrong or his memories were missing and had convinced himself he was born this way. Having no memories past the couple saving him his mind must have created new ones in its place.

He frowned down at her before gently kissing her forehead again and calmly speaking "sleep, lifemate" and he was gone-just like that. She hadn't even seen him move.

In the time it took for her to fall asleep she lay in bed, going over everything in her head over and over, trying to piece it all together.

She was asleep before the sun had fully risen.

******************************************************


	4. 4

For the next two days and nights they stayed there the other often brought them meals, clothes, anything they needed. He answered any questions they asked him about his kind-except a few things he wouldn't or couldn't answer.

Like how his kind healed.

"It is difficult to describe" he answered "we can separate our spirit from our bodies and turn it into white energy. With this energy we can enter any injury and work at it from an pure molecular level. We are able to cleanse any illness, heal injury and prevent most scarring. It takes A LOT of concentration and constant focus as well as knowledge of biology. Most Carpathian can heal the basic way, but we also have healers who can heal more serious situations, who can also heal the mind. When you are in life-or-death situations, you need to know that sort of thing."

"Can you give us a demonstration of this healing?"

He frowned "in what way?"

Shino hesitated thoughtfully "examine me. I wish to experience this for myself." The blonde cocked his head "Are you sure your hive will allow it?"

"They will not react unless they are willed to. Do not do anything.....aggressive."

The blonde frowned but moved the two or three steps to his side "I need skin contact." The bug-nin pulled back his sleeve and offered him his bare wrist. After waiting for a lone bug to scurry under the sleeve and back inside the recess with the others he wrapped both hands around the limb and his eyelids lowered halfway. He became utterly motionless, not even seeming to breathe.

"Well?" Kiba asked their teammate.

The bug-nin spoke evenly "it feels as though there is an warmth moving through me. I have never felt anything like it before. It is both soothing and comforting, like...." he seemed unable to describe it accurately. "...My Kiki are in no way alarmed or alerted by him. They seem content and accepting. This has never happened before, even with my family or clan. I feel some sort of connection between them, almost like he is a part of the hive."

When the other blinked and released him to step back he looked at him "do you commune with insects?"

The blonde nodded "we are connected to nature, all animals and life, fauna, flaura, EVERYTHING. That includes insects such as scorpions, spiders, beetles, all of it" Followed by a complement "you Kiki are definitely fascinating. Each one is as individual as you and together they make an entire being like yourself. It is no wonder you are such an good unit" he smiled "they even in their way thanked me for aiding you."

The bug-nin nodded "I think if you were to ever approach us again they would not object."

The blonde gave what they could only describe as an bow and said formerly "I am honored by your trust."

After that the bug-nin readily accepted the blonde as who and what he was. Even Kiba after he demonstrated his ability to change shape, the two male ninja's confirming he felt, looked and smelled like the animal in every way, even to Hinata's Byukugan.

  
That night when they lay in her bed together she asked him "will I...will I be able to change shape and talk to Shino's Kiki and Akamaru if I become one of your kind?" He smiled at her "you will be able to do everything I can." Her face lit up "you mean...I'll be able to heal like you?!" His laugh was good-natured "that is what you are excited about? I would have thought you would have been more excited about flying." She froze and looked at him "flying?"

He grinned "when I said we can take the form of anything, real or mythological, I MEANT anything."

"So I could become....a bird and fly?!"

He nodded "a bird, a dragon, an wild cat, wolf, you name it, you can become one. You can became a wolf and run through the forests, an eagle and soar through the sky, an fish to swim the mighty oceans, an mole or insect tunneling through the earth or a simple housefly, spying on your teammates. You can even become nothing but vapor or part of the very air itself."

Her eyes were wide as he spoke. If all this was true, he would be the most powerful man in all of the Elemental Nations and beyond! "Carpathians don't need the sort of power you think of. All we want to do is live our lives with our lifemates and people, like anyone else."

"But your abilities would make you the most powerful ninja out there!" He stroked her hair as he spoke "we don't NEED to use our abilities for war. Our people have already been decimated by war once before and with the fight between the vampires, Xavier and our people currently, we have no wish to be part of another."

She could understand, but.....

"If you and I are going to marry, then that makes you part of our society and therefore part of us. I am Carpathian and so will you be. You will no longer be human, but one of us, part of OUR society and Prince Mikhail will be you prince as well." She frowned at him "so becoming like you means that my clan and family will no longer matter" she looked at him, face angry, and all he could think was how beautiful she was when mad.

However he frowned at her "family and clan are the most important things, especially to those who live a long time. Of course they matter. You will always love and care for them-that will never change-but you will no longer be a part of that world."

He looked her deep in the eyes "if you had of married this...other man, and he told you he didn't want you to be a ninja anymore, what would happen?"

She thought about it "I would be expected to do so."

"And because I am not human-as you will be-how is this different?" She knew he had a point.

He added "you do not fully understand yet. The only thing that keeps a Carpathian male from going vampire is his lifemate. He relies on her light and very presence to keep him anchored to the world. If you were to be killed on one of your so-called missions...."  his face twisted and he shook his head "can you imagine all that in someone who just wants the world and everyone in it to burn?"

When Hinata opened her mouth to tell him she wasn't going to die, he spoke before she could "you can not say dying is not an possibly. What would have happened if I didn't interfere THIS time?"

She knew he was right. There was no telling what would happen on any mission.  She could be found and killed or captured or even raped let alone tortured. This was one of the things taught in the academy. And with her being the Hyuuga heiress there was an higher chance of rape as the enemy would want the byukugan for themselves.

After all, wasn't that why she was kidnapped as a child?

"So when we marry you want me to quit being an ninja."

He frowned at her "when we return to your village  I will be organizing with your leader AND your clan to have it happen ASAP. As soon as you are able to be safe the better. We haven't bonded or shared blood yet, both of us are in an dangerous tenable position. Until the change and our minds are fully connected to each others, I am still at danger of turning. Maybe not as much as some since I am young still, but if you were to be injured, kidnapped or to die....without you in my mind to anchor me the beast inside me-the savage animal soul all male Carpathians share-would go out of control. If that were to happen only another Carpathian could stop me. Without one here, you would have no choice but to kill me."

"NO!" Hinata snapped and he smiled at her reaction. "How do I become one of your kind?"

"It involves three blood exchanges. I would take your blood and then feed you mine. Each exchange would work on your body, reshaping your organs and enhancing your senses further than an human's, even your teammates. You would be able to hear further, see more accurately and the night will seemed like daytime to you. Taste and touch will be all the more accurate and acute. You will be able to reach out with your mind to touch others, human, animal, the trees and very earth. As an creature of nature, most it's creatures will aid you or answer your call and you will understand them. You will be able to sense things around you further than you can imagine, minds or by blank spots.

We can live a long time-longer than humans and stay younger longer-and we are also difficult to kill. Only by removing the heart from the chest and incinerating it, followed by the body.

But their IS a price for these gifts. If I were to die, you would descend into an destructive melancholy where you would become nothing more than a ghost wandering like an vacant doll. I would loose control of my beast, turning against anyone and everyone, becoming either vampire or meeting the next dawn to die. Sunlight burns us like flame and can kill us.

Some Carpathian males when they can no longer live with the darkness and beast crouching inside them and loss of feeling and emotion will lay out in the light of the dawn to die.

When my father was able to escape Xavier he attempted to do this before mother found him."

Hinata was saddened by this, that some of his kind thought there was no longer any hope for them and would let themselves die in such a painful way.

"We sleep like the dead buried deep in the earth until the sun sets of a night. While we lay there we are completely helpless, vulnerable, unable to move or react except for the early hours of sunrise and sunset.  Without our safeguards or any sort of protection someone aware of our position could destroy us before we could even defend ourselves. Even our vast mental abilities are useless at this time. Some of us have humans that help aid us, humans trusted with our protection during those times, trusted humans. They are considered family in some way and as they protect and trust us with their lives, we trust and protect them."

She blinked at him "so you DO associate with humans? I though your kind was secret."'

"There ARE those who we allow to know of our existence, trusted humans. As I said most are family of some sort, for example-through our lifemates-a few others have proven themselves to be worthy of that belief. For instance one, close friend to the Prince, is helping us find how to keep our children alive the first year of their lives. So far they are successful."

Hinata frowned "why are your children dying?"

"Xavier put mutated microbes called extremophiles into the earth and waterways all over the world. These microbes enter a male while he sleeps and HE passes them to the woman during sex. THIS is what is weakening our children in the womb. Our children can no longer nurse from their mother and need to be fed and cared for in other ways. They do not sleep in the earth and can function during the day, so need protection. My mother discovered a lifeform that kills those microbes so there is hope. Our healer and the others-including the human that the Prince trusts-are trying to find a way to spread the lifeform around the world fast enough and any female currently pregnant and her lifemate are being charged with sleeping in it. So far, things look hopeful."

Hinata blinked "so your mother found the cure?"

"It took a long time for Xavier to contaminate us, it will take just as long to destroy it, but for now at least we can protect our mothers while they carry."

Hinata was silent, thinking, trying to process everything he had told her over the last few nights, including now.

If she married him in HIS way her possible children risked death in the first year of life, but they DID have a possible cure AND she was sure Tsunade-sama could help greatly in that way.

She would be totally helpless during the day and would have to watch everyone she knew and loved grow old and die while she remained young and vital.

Sunlight would burn her-even kill her.

She would no longer be a ninja, a member of team Kuranei. They would have to replace her. (Possibly Sakura-san. Team 7 broke up long ago with Naruto-kun missing and Sasuke Uchiha a traitor and missing nin.)

Could she do that to her team? Leave them like that? She knew as clan heirs they would understand, after all, Shino himself was newly married by his father's will this past month and Kiba had his eye on someone-another Inuzuka-but could she just leave her team like that? They worked together as an well-oiled machine due to so long together, to leave now would screw up their dynamic and force the other two to have to learn to fight along side someone else.

But if she couldn't travel or be out in daylight, what use what she be to them anyway?

She would have to talk to the others about this.

Something occurred to her. He had said she would be able to heal like him. She would be able to realize her greatest dream. Yes, she wanted to free her clan from the caged bird seal, but her greatest wish all her life-the ONE THING she had dared to want for herself-was to become a healer like Tsunade-hime. She wanted to be able to help people, her fellow ninja and anyone else who needed it. She was a ninja because it was expected of her, to work for the village and prove clan Hyuuga strong, but ever since she was a child she wanted to be a healer or medic. She even would willingly work in the hospital.

The blonde's head cocked at her "you want to help, not hurt. To some people it is a calling all their lives, but circumstances interfere. I would teach you everything I know as would my parents. If it is your wish, we could query with our greatest healer if you could receive training with him. If your gift is strong you would be extremely valuable to both races."

At her excitement he shook his head "think about it first, seriously. It can not be your ONLY motivation."

He was right and it wasn't fair on him. She had gotten so excited and had in her haste been prepared there and then to consent, but making a major life-changing decision like that based on her  desire to help people only was just wrong.

She didn't know how they functioned buried in the earth without being able to breathe and just the thought terrified her, made her feel claustrophobic, but obviously it did and she was sure he would tell her how if she asked.

In fact he had been remarkably open with them-her mostly-since he saved them. He had told them things Hinata was sure he shouldn't and told them nothing but truth, only keeping to himself the most private and important things she thought might endanger his race.

When they were alone he would speak gently, considerate of her feelings and she felt that during those times until she fell asleep, she got to know him well.

Which was an advantage really. When she married the man her father had picked out it would be an arranged marriage only, she was sure that she wouldn't love him. All it would be was a way to give the Clan head another heir, maybe one that didn't disappoint him like she had. The man would only be obligated to impregnate her, not care for and love her.

If she married Naruto she would have someone she could definitely see as a friend, he had already told her-in front of her teammates no less-he loved her, therefore showing he cared enough about her to not care who knew. He didn't care about pride when it was to make her feel better about herself.

He could DEFINITELY protect her as well as showing he cared about her dreams and wants. He called her beautiful, talented, said she had an sexy body and showed it in his eyes when he looked at her and touched her.

He provided them with good food, expensive or at least good quality clothes, shelter, warm beds, protection from discovery by the enemy. He had saved them from death, healed them with no scars or missing limbs.

He was prepared to do whatever it took to make her happy, even if it made himself uncomfortable, and the same to ensure her father accepted HIM as her new husband.

She began to think she wouldn't mind being married to him. She turned her thoughts to the positive of going through this change. She would be remarkably hard to kill. Her senses would increase incredibly and because the byukugan was a sight ability, probably THAT would also increase. She would finally be able to satisfy her father in skill, since her speed and strength as well as her senses would be enhanced. She could become the healer she always dreamed of becoming.

Something occurred to her, his 'safeguards'. She wondered if they could be used on the caged bird seal. Even if they couldn't remove them, even if it just blocked the ability to cause pain, it would be worth it. Without that the main branch could no longer threaten the branch members into becoming their virtual slaves.

She looked at him, making sure the question was in her mind and eyes. "I would have to examine one first" he explained "I spoke to my parents and they assured me that if THEY can not, they would seek the opinion of the others of our race." Hinata's smile to him was grateful. He had ALREADY spoke to his family, knowing this was important to her. Another point towards him for her.

She turned her thoughts back to her previous.

She could understand and become part of nature, being able to communicate with ANY animal, wild or not, even Akamaru and Shino's bugs. If what he said was true, even the earth and trees.

Idlely she wondered if that included ALL types of summons.

She could change shape into animals and creatures of the earth, make her body like mist or even disappear and become part of the air itself.

She could read and control human minds.

She would be part of a race that saw each other as brothers and sisters and protected and treated each other as such. His parents would love and welcome her with open arms inviting her into their midst and even teach her everything she wanted to know.

Through her and her family in Hidden Leaf he would have an connection to the village, just as she would to his clan and kind.

She decided to ask him something about the change "you said three blood exchanges, why?"

"Carpathian blood is very potent. Each exchange gives the human body time to accept and adapt to the change. It CAN be done in less, but from what I'm told it is very painful and even some see it as a little humiliating, best not to shock the body too  much and do it in three."

"Humiliating in what way?"

"As the human body changes the Carpathian blood has to flush all mortal toxins from the system, in ANY WAY." Hinata realized what he was saying and blushed. Then realized something of what he had just said "you said human and mortal, not lifemates. Does this mean not only lifemates can be changed?"

"Yes a few have, but it's extremely dangerous. When a lifemate is turned the male will be there with her, anchoring her mind with his, soothing her and helping her through the entire process. Vampires and others have tried turning human woman before, but those females have gone insane and become nothing but evil insane seductresses who kidnap, feed off and kill children and must be destroyed. Only gifted women like yourself can be lifemates and changed successfully."

She frowned "no men have ever been changed before?"

"Three only and they have needed constant supervision and monitoring to ensure their beast doesn't compel them to do what they should not. THEY TOO were gifted. One was Jaguar, another was an descendant of one and the third was unusual in every way. His gifts were varied from speed and strength to some sort of magic never seen before. To this day, no one knows who he was or where he came from. Even himself."

Hinata blinked. That last one, was he talking about himself? She wanted to ask but decided now wasn't the time so she asked about the other confusing part "Jaguar? Is this one of the other races you mentioned? Tell me about them."

"There are five we know of. Jaguar, Lycan, Mage, Panznicii De Toate, Carpathians and humans. Jaguar are shape-shifters who can take the form of said cats. Their race is dying out, mostly by their own hands. Males are impregnating females then leaving them to raise alone. So the females are finding mates and the love they need among other races-mostly humans-so the bloodline is being weakened and dying out. My great grand uncle has mated with one, a princess, a pure royal blood of their race. Lately some males have become corrupted by vampires and are doing the unthinkable."

"What?"

"Finding females hidden among humans, kidnapping them, torturing and if they show enough blood for their cat to shift to protect them, raping them to get children they can turn into more of them. If they don't, murder them." This horrified Hinata. It was bad enough that ninja risked or went through this, but kidnapping some woman from an happy family life because of what she MIGHT be and then turning her into a baby factory when it was their own fault this happened....

"There are still good men of their race out there, men sickened and horrified by what their own racesex is doing to others. One-Loise-even almost lost his life trying to save the Princess, her little cousin and an Lycan from one of those groups. He was one of those males turned. And when he saved them, he saved many others."

"What do you mean?"

"The Lycan was bound to an very powerful Carpathian at the time. They were bound but not completely, her death would have driven him over the edge and to become vampire. Plus the princesses little cousin? She had previously been one of those victims rescued and was pregnant."

Hinata understood "so this Jaguar man....they owed him a debt of honor for it."

"Mary-Anne, the Lycan-begged her lifemate to save him. While he may have been inclined before to let him pass in peace, when the Princess added her voice despite her hate of the males of her own race, he was bound to try. However doing so made him directly responsible for the male from that moment on. An Jaguar's cat spirit is all things the animal is, wild, ruthless, without mercy. Carpathian animal nature is doubly so. If Loise rose as vampire, insane and deadly it would be his and his responsibility ALONE to hunt him down and destroy him. Any lives he killed and families would be his fault."

"But did he?"

"Last I heard he was trying to help his people. He may no longer be an Jaguar, but he's committed to helping his former race."

"What about the other races?"

"Lycans are hidden among human society. They are usually protectors, like law enforcers, hunters, politicians, that sort of thing. They were so well hidden that they were seen as either legends or extinct. That was until Mary-Anne Delany.

Lycans are....different. They are similar to us AND Jaguar, but not the same. Carpathians and Jaguar have their animal, their beast inside them that is an true animal soul. However an Lycan has an guardian, an intelligent animal being who can rush to the front to protect their bodies. They are an separate entity with their own personality."

To Hinata it sounded like one of the Jinchiriki's.

"Similar I would say but the wolf guardian is something they are not only born with but hidden deep until needed. They work WITH their 'host' and desire only what they wish, whether its love and family or to protect others. As with Carpathians and vampires, SOME bad elements in the Lycan race have lead to the rise of legends and fear, but they are not like that. They police their own race as well. In fact because of this they have recently come to clashes with us over trying to kill off one of the other races, the Panznicii De Toate, or Guardian-Of-All. My sister Skyler and her lifemate are one, as is HIS brother and hers."

"What legends?"

"You call them werewolves."

Her eyes widened "Werewolves are REAL as well?!"

"Lycans. As with any legend, they are exaggerated or out-and-out lies."

"Why would this race persecute your sister and brother-in-law's clan?"

"The Guardians are only new as a race. So far we only know of eight, Skyler and Demetri, his brother Fenris and HIS and HER sister and her mate Zev and Mary-Anne and Mantolito. They came from mixed blood, first Fenris, his brother, Zev and then Mary-Anne and Mantolito. Essentially Carpathian blood exposed to the strength and power of an Lycan too long. They adapt, becoming a mix of both races, without an Carpathians vulnerability to sunlight."

"So this race doesn't like that these half-bloods exist?"

"As with both races there have been bad elements. The Lycan call them the Sangeru. They REFUSE to believe there is a difference between them and the Panznicii De Toate."

To Hinata this sounded wrong. But his next comment surprised her "your teammate-Kiba-remindes me a little of the Lycans."

She gasped "you think he might be one?!" But he laughed at this "no, but he bares some similarities to them. I scanned him and he does not have their unique mental patterns however it is possible somewhere in his clan's line that they had some sort of contact with them. Whether that was through breeding or they are descendants of one, I do not know."

"You told us about your race, Carpathians, and I KNOW about humans, what about the other... Mage."

"Yes. They were humans who bore an unique ability to manipulate the energies of the planet into various spells or incantations."

"Sounds like Sages" Hinata commented and he blinked at her "Sages?"

"Yes, umm..." she tried to think of a way to explain it "they can manipulate the energy of nature for jutsu's." He looked at her "how many of these....Sages, are there?"

"I only know of two, The Sage Of The Six Paths and the Toad Sage, Jiriaya-san. But the Path Sage died hundreds of years ago and the Toad Sage hasn't been seen in years, since....." she chocked off and he sensed her thought "since the last time Naruto-kun was seen alive. He's still looking."

"Humm. Perhaps I should seek out this Jiriaya, see just how similar he is to an Mage."

Hinata shook her head "please don't. He cared deeply for Naruto-kun in the time he was training him. It hurt him when he disappeared and he's been looking for a trace of him ever since. If YOU turned up but told him you are NOT he, it will just make the pain worse" Hinata sighed "it wil be the same for the Hokage. Lady Tsunade saw him as an nephew or little brother, she was so upset, she had people looking for years. But in this case we can't help it, you have to be seen by the Hokage before being allowed to wander around the village and talk to father and the elders."

He looked like he was going to say "I don't NEED permission", but decided against it, instead saying "I can change my appearance if it is your wish, until you are able to explain." Her eyes lit up "really?! You can do that too?!" He smirked at her thought "can I do that too?"  to which he nodded "yes I can and yes you will be able to. Sometimes we can walk the streets just like any other mortal."

"Show me!" she challenged.

With an continuous smirk his body changed, going from tall and stocky to short and skinny, his hair red and short but streaked in black, white and orange and the eyes the strangest color she had seen. They were green, but not just any green, an metallic green. She stared into them, fascinated. She found herself reaching up to touch his face and pull it down so she could look closer. He smiled at her reaction. "Why these eyes?" she asked softly "not that I'm saying I don't like them."

"There IS a reason I choose them. These are the eyes of an seer where I come from, more importantly, an Dragonseekers eyes. My father and aunt have them, so did their father and my grand uncle and grandmother as well." He ran a hand through his hair "and the hair is my aunts."

She frowned "why don't YOU have them? Is it because of your mother?"

"Most Carpathians have black hair and eyes, except a few. The healer has silver eyes. The Savage twins have blonde hair and green eyes. A few others have different but the only cases of different eyes and skin otherwise are lifemates. Me, I'm unique."

"Why?" she finally came out and said it "Why are you so different? Why were you chosen to watch us?"

He looked into her eyes for a long time before a slow smile spread across his face. He cupped her face and leaned down to kiss her, a slow tender kiss that was barely an touch of lips but left her dizzy and with the peculiar feeling of being loved. "It is almost dawn, lifemate. You and your team need to sleep deep this day for come the next rising we will make our way towards your home." And then he was gone.

She frowned after him. It seemed that while 'lifemates can not lie to each other', it didn't mean they couldn't evade it altogether.

 _"All will be explained once we reached your leader"_ his voice in her head answered.

"You promise?"

Amused he answered _"my word. Do you not think it would be a better conversation when everyone who needs to hear it is in the same room to hear it?"_

He had a point.

 _"Sleep well, lifemate."_ She frowned "you keep calling me lifemate but rarely use my name. Why?"

_"To us it's much more....intimate to use the term. It is similar to you using the term San or sama, but more like saying 'my wife' or 'my love'. If you wish I will stop..."_

"No!" she said hastily, blushing "I only wanted to know."

 _"How about this"_ he reasoned _"when referring to you, unless the situation calls for it, I will use your name. When talking directly to you, I will use Lifemate. Or if you wish, it can be the other way around."_ Hinata thought about it seriously. She had only brought it up because she thought it strange he rarely called her by name. Over the past few nights of hearing it she had kind of gotten used to it, even liked it a bit. Well, more than a bit.

However part of her had though it was because while he didn't use it he could mentally keep a distance from her. Which seemed stupid now she thought of it.

NOW she saw it different.

In her clan she rarely called her family by name, instead using the terms for their relationship to her from 'neesan' and 'chichi' and even called her cousin 'niisan'. The only people she called by their names was ones she wasn't close to, didn't particularly like or when referring to, just like he said. Which did she prefer though, that he call her by name when talking to her, but lifemate to others, or lifemate but by name to others?

Which brought up another thought, what was that thing he was calling her before? Cara something?

_"Cara mia.Our world has hundreds of different languages and THIS term is one. Rough translation it means 'my heart,' 'my darling,' or 'beloved one.' Or would you prefer Sivamet-'my heart'?_

"Language?"

_"Different spoken words. A single word can be translated into another. In my world there is roughly 6500 spoken languages. For instance lifemate in OUR tongue is avio päläfertiil._

_Another term for Vampire is hän ku tuulmahl elidet-or thief of life or life-stealer._

_Isä is father. Lana is daughter. YOU would call me koje-or husband. I would call you päläfefertiil-wife or mate. Warrior is kont. My people, the Carpathians are karpatii. So on."_

She hesitated then asked softly "what is brother?" He answered her without pause, readily _"ekä."_

"Ekka" she repeated but he said no, showing her where to emphasize and how to say it  _"I know you are thinking of your cousin."_ In the Elemental Nations there was only ONE language everyone spoke, the idea of different ways of talking intreged her. "How many of these others do you know?"

_"Three. Yours is remarkably similar to one called Japanese. Then I am of course fluent in my own. There is another called English and I am currently learning an older one called Latin which was used by Mages of the past for spells-similar to your jutsu's."_

"Your jutsu's are in another of these languages?"

 _"Yes and no. Latin has always been an powerful language because it is old. It was said to be the very language used by the original Mages who created the spells. Spells-like your jutsu's-changed the more they were used and were passed from person to person. They can also loose something in translation. Can you imagine how powerful those spells would be if found again and used in their original glory?"_ This she understood "so you're learning it so you can use them as they are first written?"

_"Exactly."_

"Are there many of those such things?" she asked curiously.  
   
 _"While Mages as a race are not as old as us, they are older than some. Latin was once an very old spoken language as well as one of the first written ones. BECAUSE of it's age it is powerful, which is why it was used. Very few these days can actually speak it, let alone read or write it. Even very few of the oldest of our race can read it, let alone speak it, and they are thousands of years old."_

This fascinated Hinata "can I....can YOU teach me some?"

 _"Not Latin, at least not yet. I can not learn it myself and teach you as well. I can not teach you English as well. If you like, I can teach you the language of my race."_ She frowned "Why not English?"

_"It is the most complicated language to teach or learn. They have so many meanings for one word it would take years to learn it."_

"Oh, okay" the more she thought about it though, the more the idea of learning HIS appealed to her. She could talk to him in a way no one else would understand. _"We do that in our minds"_ he pointed out. "I know, I meant out loud. Can we?"

 _"If it is your wish, yes"_ she felt he was pleased by her interest. "I do, I want to."

 _"We will have an advantage that will help you learn faster"_ he told her with an mental smile.

"What's that?" she asked curiously.

 _"It will be faster than normal humans because we can communicate through our minds. I can speak it out loud, you can read the meanings from my mind while I do so. By hearing the words out loud and learning the translation simultaneously, you will pick it up faster."_ She accepted this when she felt an strange lethargy. “What’s happening?!”

_“Dawn is approaching. During the day-except for the very early and late hours-I must sleep in the earth. I sleep deeply, like the dead, so you will not be able to get in touch with me.”_

“Is that why you insist we sleep of a day?” He said simply _“I can not protect you while I rest.”_ She blinked then said “sleep well. I will see you when you rise.”

_“Odam bur, jela lamti, kidu nelkul gond.”_

“What does that mean?”

_“Basically sleep well, Sunlight In A Meadow, rise without worry.”_

“Sunlight In A Meadow?”

 _“Your name in Japanese translates to 'sunny place' or 'in the sun'. Your clan name Hyuuga means 'towards the sun'. So 'Sunlight In A Meadow' is an type of....”_ he hesitated then said slowly _“A type of affection or nick name if you will.”_ She realized what he was saying, he had made her an pet name of her own, not the other terms. Sunlight In A Meadow. She decided that she liked it. Even though sunlight was deadly to his kind, he thought of her as the light in an beautiful field, she could feel it, that’s what he was telling her.

“Thank you” she blushed “good day and I will see you next rising.”

*************************************************************************************************************************************


	5. 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING!!!! Contains Sakura bashing!!!!
> 
> *******************************************************************

Three ninja of the Hidden Leaf village and one dog leapt through the trees, bounding from one branch to the next at speeds that surpassed normal human capabilities. They wanted to get home as quickly as possible to their clans and family, even though they knew they would have a lot to answer for being AT LEAST five days and nights late.

Another figure followed them, or rather an shape. The black jaguar kept easily even with their pace, ignoring the dogs looks in his direction, knowing it was an instinctual reaction to something he saw as an enemy in the animal kingdom.

In fact it amused him in some ways.

Thanks to the blonde, the group had yet to encounter any enemy, skillfully directing them away via Hinata. When asked if he was an sensor he answered through her "he says in a way. He is connected to the earth and SHE sends him signals of any human presence around us at an wide  radius. Then he just sends his mind out to follow it and can see them through any animal eyes in the area to see who or what they are."

"He knows the difference between the villages?"

"He watched our villages for some time before he found us. He knows who is where, who leads them and who is at war or so, but he has yet to set foot or communicate with any of them. WE are the first he has exposed himself to."

"So he knows about Hidden Leaf and the others, just hasn't entered any of them. It is how he knows which way to go to get there while bypassing patrols from both the enemy and allies. It also explains why no one has seen him and assumed who he is." She nodded, then looked at him curiously "was when you found us the first time you saw me, or did you follow us?" she was then silent, listening for the answer.

"What did he say?" Kiba asked. "He said it was the first time. If he had of seen or sensed me earlier he would came to the village and either spoke to me, or gone directly to father to get us married instead."

"Hmmm" Shino said "it seems his investigation of Hidden Leaf was bad timing on his or our part. We must have been on a mission at the time he was there, and was gone before we returned."

Hinata nodded.

Towards dawn they had to stop to rest, knowing the blonde would be unable to travel much longer. Before he left he informed them he would put up safeguards to protect them, allowing only allies to enter. Enemies or those with betrayal in mind would find it impossible to cross, so they were free to sleep without guard if they wished. When he moved to leave Hinata asked him why he didn't stay with them and slept in the ground of the clearing with them.

"Carpathians very rarely let others know where they rest" he answered "it is protection as well as security."

Hinata frowned at him severely "we all know you are vulnerable then, but I am supposed to be your wife, or will be soon. Don't you trust me? Don't you trust me to protect you?"

"It is not that, jela lamti, it is trained into us since birth not to. The only ones who do so are lifemates together or family and a few who have human families, but even then those who live among humans have extra layers of security. The only occasion that changes is when it comes to injury and then they have other Carpathians rest in the earth above them, and that is usually an healer or family member. It is not that they do not trust them, it is just how it is done."

She considered this.

He had told her-told THEM that males of his race were usually loners. A Carpathian male with an lifemate had an difficult time trusting unmated males around his woman. Because of the vampires and those males at their end desperate for some female to save their souls, they saw them as someone trying to steal their woman and instinctively didn't trust them, it was nothing personal or against their honor but the behavior of an alpha animal in the face of another around their mate-even if that other WAS family or trusted friend.

In fact the only reason he could accept her teammates around her was that he had read deep into the two males memories and feelings for her and found that all three males saw her as an younger more emotionally fragile sister they had to protect and care for.

The four had been together as a team for a little more than eleven years, they couldn't go through what they had together and develop more than that, it was impossible. This helped soothe him, these two young human males and their animal companion would assure his lifemates' safety when he couldn't.

Hinata understood why he wouldn't rest around them. Unattached males became hunters simply because by being alone they had no one the vampires could use against them. Because of this hunters stayed away from others, for their own and others protection. If someone knew where you slept when you were THAT helpless, they could either hurt you or be tortured for the information.

He did it for them as much as himself.

"I understand" she said softly "I won't ask you to do something against your nature, go."

He smiled at her and leaned down, guiding her head up and his lips touched hers. She melted as he shared an passionate kiss with her before standing back up "I will not be far, jela lamti, do not leave the area of the safeguards." She nodded "we have water, tents and fish in that stream if we get hungry. We have been traveling all night, I think the four of us will sleep well."

The three males nodded.

After he was gone the three males sat watching their only female teammate, waiting. When she  nodded to signal he was asleep-or 'resting'-they went into action. They knew from experience over the last couple of days what happened when the blonde slept. His mind would fully withdraw from hers and she would suffer for it.

He had warned them that first night what happened when two lifemates could no longer touch each other's thoughts. The way he explained it was that once two lifemates found each other and their thoughts touched for the first time, the bond between their minds started. It wasn't the full effect because that was the males responsibility to tie them together fully and he wouldn't do that until Hinata was SURE she wanted to be with him. Once done, there was NO changing her mind or turning back-it was permanent.

However from that moment they first touched and onward every time they touched minds and thoughts the connection between them would strengthen all the more. Soon their minds would instinctively reach out for each other, needing that connection, the male more so because of how the females helped control the beast inside them.

Since an Carpathian male shut down everything when they slept, including their thoughts and mind, this meant the female could no longer feel him (unless she was also Carpathian). Because of the strengthening connection the sudden silence between them affected the female deeply, leading to depression, uncontrollable greif and the inner beleif the other was dead.

It was why they tried to make sure they slept during the day when recovering, so she would wake up after he rose. However there WERE times when they were either awake themselves or awoke before him and got to see what he meant.

On the first days it was nothing much, just she seemed preoccupied and they merely had to hold her attention until he woke.

But after that it got worse. It worried the two human males. If this was a taste of an human females reaction to their mate being asleep, what happened when he died or was killed? While Shino started on the stew they would have for an late dinner, Kiba searched through one of their packs for the herbs the blonde had given them for her-just in case it got to be too severe a reaction.

Hinata smiled shallowly at him "I'm fine."

Kiba didn't listen and pulled out what they needed to add to her stew in order to relax her enough to sleep.

Later Shino and Kiba sat down together while their teammate dozed in her tent. The dog nin glanced inside the open tent flaps "I'm worried about her. If this is a woman's reaction to the guys sleeping, maybe it would be better if she consented and got changed."

"A big part of her wants it" Shino said lowly "however she has doubts and what she sees as responsibilities holding her back."

"Like what?"

"Us" the bug-user nin said starkly "she knows if she goes through with this, she can no longer be a member of team 8. Not only would it mean her going out in daylight-which they can not do-but were her life ever in danger we risk HIM going homicidal on us. Both he, and the Hokage would never allow that. Especially if he does turn out to be the Uzumaki."

"How do you figure?"

"He told us what happens when males loose their mates, how they become the very things they protect us from. Then there is the fact he has been missing for the last ten years. With the Hokage's feelings for the blonde, do you REALLY think she would allow him out of her sight for the next millennium if it turns out to be him?" Kiba nodded "I see what you mean. The Hokage will do whatever it takes to keep him in the village with her, even if it means forcing Haishi-san to allow the marriage."

"And when the Hyuuga elders find out how powerful he is, they will want that in their line." Kiba sighed "I hope he knows what he's in for."

"I am more than positive he is" The bug nin replied "I always saw something....other in him, an intelligence beyond what he showed. It was NOT the demon inside him but something more, all him." Kiba frowned "then why the dumb act?"

"You saw the way the villagers acted towards him, how they encouraged their children to treat him, how WE treated him as children. They saw him as the very thing he held inside him." Kiba blinked, they did similar to the bug nin when he was young.

"Yet remember how he was in battle, he was unpredictable, stubborn, and seemed able to read the enemy. These were NOT signs of the demon but his linage. I spoke with those who knew them personally. His mother was the kind who cared deeply for people she let into her heart but was hot headed and unpredictable in battle, his father an genius in tactics but also kind. It is and was obvious his personality came from both, not some demon presence."

"He was forced to act the fool or those idiots would start yelling he was the demon" Kiba understood and nodded "someone who pulls pranks and is generally dumb couldn't possibly be an demon" he snorted "I was dumber than he was then, good thing we all grew up."

"With the demon and his memories gone, so is any knowledge or reason to act any lesser than he is. With the power he now wields any village will kill to make him a part of it and he knows it. If Hidden Leaf want him, they will have to pay."

"And his price is ONLY marrying Hinata?"

"Hyuuga will want his genetics in their line as soon as possible, making them stronger, giving what they see as an failed heir to him will seem too good to be true. They gain someone in their line more powerful than they imagine and get rid of what they see as a failure as well. Hinata is NOT a killer, she was born to heal people, trained by Tsunade-hime she could have been an incredible healer or even Doctor, but her clan want weapons, people they can use to show off the strength and power of their clan, to show politically and in force they are the best now the Uchiha is gone. The council want position and privilege, and as with the Caged Bird Seal are willing to use their own children and family as sacrifices to get it."     

Kiba frowned "I'm just worried about what will happen when we arrive at Kohona. I mean how are we going to get HIM through the gates  without papers? We can get into trouble for it and we can't exactly say "he's Naruto Uzumaki, returned from supposed dead and without memories and just happened to have lost his ninja papers."

Shino nodded "normally it would be an issue but because we are late, the minute we arrive we will be sent through to report to the Hokage personally. Since he is with us if we state he was the reason we survived and insist the Hokage will want to see him personally as he has information on an security issue within Hidden Leaf...." he shrugged "'there is also the option of him following us in one of his forms."

"True" Kiba nodded "he has only to do that invisible act (the three don't see him becoming the very molecules in the air as this, but becoming invisible) and stay in the room until we tell him to show himself...."

"Or wait outside the room until called. Hinata-chan said that he can change his appearance-an type of genjutsu. He has only to use it until we prepare the Hokage for what she will see. If he was seen inside the village as he is now before we could get in to see Tsunade-sama it would cause too much trouble first."

"Yeah I get it" Kiba agreed "if guys like Iruka sensei saw him and he didn't react, it would hurt him, he and Naruto WERE very close. Then there's Sakura Haruno." Something suddenly occurred to him "what about that bastard Uchiha? If this really is our Naruto with memory loss, what will happen when the traitor not only finds out about him but his race to? I mean the prick cares about nothing but power, what happens if he finds out he can become like him with all the powers with it? That is if he isn't the reason he's like this in the first place. I mean he could have been the reason he was near death."

Both young men reflected briefly on the incident that happened just before the mission that he disappeared on. The traitor had been the first place that the female Hokage had thought to go when the boy she saw as an grandson or even little brother had gone missing, but even to this day no trace had been found. He had just....vanished. Both young men would be interested to know what had actually happened to him, how he had ended up so close to death as they suspected when the young man's 'parents' had found him and turned him to save his life.

Shino had already expressed the opinion that since the blonde had been trained by the Sage nin that perhaps he had had to fight someone the nature chakra was still in his system. He said since the race was connected to the earth it was possible they sensed his presence and came to investigate to find him like that and both Hinata and Kiba agreed it was likely.

The only thing that worried them was how and why the nine tailed was gone. Did some enemy take it from him and Naruto had to fight them? Did they remove it after when he was lying helpless on the ground? Did they capture him during the mission and forcefully remove it, leaving him to die-discarded like rubbish somewhere?

And most importantly, WHO had done it and WHAT were they planning to do with it?!

And if they didn't, where WAS the creature? Did it escape somehow on it's own? Did the change do something to it or even somehow....kill it? They doubted that. The boy's 'parents' would have told him about it....wouldn't they? Or was it still inside him, buried deep or even....merged with him?

One thing was for sure, this group hunting the tailed beasts was going to find themselves one short.

  
The two males were awoken in the afternoon by a surprise. Shino's Kiki warned him of others while Akamaru's barking roused his master. Standing in their camp looking at their tents impatiently were three figures. ALL recognizable to the boys. "MOM?!" Kiba all but shrieked "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"

"Looking for you guys, baka!" the other figure said as she folded her arms over her chest, glaring at him "where have you been!?" Shino frowned "how did you get inside the area? HE protected it."

"He said as long as they had negative thoughts about us" Kiba looked at the other "these are fellow Leaf. That must have protected them." The female Inuzuka frowned at them "what are you talking about? That....sense of foreboding we went through? What was it and where have you been?!" The only male of the group spoke out "where is Hinata-san?"

Both boys exchanged looks and motioned them to join them "it's a long story" they looked at the male "she's fine, asleep."

The three moved to sit around the campfire with them.

Hours later the three were finishing off their fish as they wrapped up their story. "So this guy saved you, all because he and Hinata are destined mates. He's a member of another race entirely that no one knew about-the closest we have come to them is the legends about vampire-which are the criminals of their race. Their race are connected to nature and can control it-at least storms-and can become any creature or person they wish to completely.

HE saved you because of your connection to Hinata, hunted for you and insisted you spend the last three days healing and recovering your chakra."

They nodded and Shino spoke "I took the opportunity to obtain as much information as I could on both his race and any others that he know of that exist. He is aware of only five races altogether. One he thinks is the origin of the Inuzuka" the bug-nin looked at the older female pointedly who blinked at him, startled. She calmed and looked thoughtful "in that case I think I'll hang around a while."

The bug-nin looked at the other female "he has information on YOUR missing teammate." When she opened her mouth he narrowed his eyes at her "the OTHER one." Did she really care so little for everyone else but the traitor that he was her first thought when he mention 'missing'? The Uchiha WASN'T missing, he was an traitor, he LEFT, and left willingly.

She leaned forward "WHAT SORT of information?" Something about the way she was acting sent their teeth on edge. Her attitude wasn't one of an teammate finding out someone may know where a missing comrade was, rather it made them tense as if THEY were being threatened-like if they said the wrong thing she would try to kill them there and then.

They didn't want to think about it but....the girl had always had an unhealthy obsession with the Uchiha, forcing an promise from the blonde to 'bring him back' and all but beating him up every time he failed. Now that they thought about it, she was beating on the blonde any opportunity she got. Now they could see that same look in her eyes, like she were waiting for them to say he was alive so she could stomp off and beat him up again.

With the medical and strength training she had received from Tsunade-sama, there was no telling how much damage she would cause now.

They didn't want to think of it, to think something suspicious about an fellow Leaf, but....could she have been the cause of or have something to do with his disappearance in the first place? They had thought it was possibly the Uchiha himself, but now they REALLY thought about it the traitor wouldn't. He may have betrayed the village and even hurt the blonde, but he never went out of his way to outright kill him. The one time he almost had had been when he KNEW Kakashi-san was nearby and able to save him. He wouldn't have taken the Kyuubi because except for the curse mark which wasn't his choice, he didn't want external means to gain power. He wanted to kill his brother with pure skill and jutsu. The Kyuubi-to him-would be dishonorable.

Could....could she have betrayed him in anger of failing to return her obsession? Maybe 'given' him to the Akutsuki? It was an terrifying thought, that one of their own would casually just betray another to die like that, but it made sense in a twisted way. There was always something wrong with her, when the blonde had disappeared she hadn't even seemed worried.

It would explain it, she KNEW all along.

And in a way it would also explain the blonde's memory loss. It was possible that with the pain of the betrayal by someone he not only trusted but was crushing on coupled with the trauma of the extraction and torture by the band of criminals PLUS the change from human to Carpathian all  was too much for the boy and he buried who he was deep, convinced that that life didn't exist. He was and always had been, Carpathian.

Now here faced with sights and familiar areas he KNEW he might have existed here previously, but with the memories locked away he had no way of knowing if it was true or not. And there was also the possibly that a big part of him wouldn't want to remember. Shino blinked then spoke "he witnessed what happened to him, but he will only tell Lady Tsunade. He is traveling with us to report to her directly."

"Oh really" Sakura seemed a little TOO interested "and where is he now?"

"He is away from camp right now, his kind don't sleep like us, they need certain....elements we don't have here. He'll be back at sunset." Sakura snorted and sat back "and you believe him? He could be out there now betraying you to the enemy." Kiba glared at her but Shino spoke calmly "because my kiki tell me he's trustworthy." Kiba nodded "yeah. And he's proven it to us" he turned his head to look at his mother "Akamaru and I trust him mom. So does Hinata."

Tsume Inuzuka eyed her son solemnly for a few long seconds then nodded, believing in him and their belief and views of the situation. Her son-no matter how foolish he used to be-was an seasoned ninja now, he knew when and why to trust his instincts. So if he said this....man, this...Carpathian was worth their trust and wouldn't betray them or the village, she believed him.

"There is something you should know" Shino said, only for Kiba to hiss at him, his name in disbelief. He looked at his teammate "he can protect himself. His power is vast." He looked at his  teammate who realized what he was saying. IF the pink haired banshee WAS responsible in some way for his disappearance, then the idea he was still alive would cause her to act, revealing herself. ESPECIALLY with their earlier comment about him having 'information' on what happened.

Then they could do something about it, they had two witnesses other than themselves. Kiba backed down at this, not happy. The bug nin looked at the three "his name is Naruto Dragonseeker and we have reason to believe he IS our missing Uzumaki\Namikaze. Just not wanting to reveal himself."

Silence, shocked silence.

Finally as they were expecting SHE spoke, eyes narrowed "what are you talking about?!"

"Not only does he look exactly like him-only older-but we have seen and heard hints over the last three days to suggest it IS him, only suffering either memory loss or repression. We convinced him to come along with us to see Lady Tsunade to possibly regain those memories. He knows there is something wrong, but has buried his worries and fears in his new life."

Neji frowned "so you are saying something happened to make him loose or repress his memories and around that time he.....changed into this other race, perhaps the demon fox caused it."

Shino shook his head "his abilities are too different to be an mutation caused by trauma. He says 'my race' and 'my prince' as well as the suggestion of parents. By what we pieced together some humans are capable of making the change over to this race due to an evolutionary trait caused by their races near extinction at the hands of war and an enemy."

Neji cocked his head "how so?"

"He has mentioned changing Hinata into his race. That his race are 'born' with only one woman as their mates and due to the low birth count of his kind, they are finding them among 'gifted' human women. From what we can theorize-women able to use or manipulate chakra. However ONLY these types of woman are capable. If a woman with chakra is only genetically compatible then it stands to reason someone like Naruto Uzumaki-with his chakra, the demon fox AND the sage energy taught to him by Jariaya-sama, would possibly also be capable of such a change."

"But he no longer had the demon when he went missing!" All eyes turned to the protesting pinkette "what do you mean?" and now both young men saw their own suspicions in the other female and males eyes. She immediately began trying to cover it up "I mean that's the only way anyone would be able to overpower him, wouldn't it? And there IS the organization hunting them down. They must have got him and pulled it out of him to beat him so badly."

All four looked at her like they didn't believe her. There HAD to be a way to prove it, to make her talk.

"Perhaps I can help" the group had never noticed during their long conversation how late it was getting. The sun was low on the horizon, close to sunset and their campfire had been keeping the area well lit. Standing at the edge of the clearing, shaded under the trees there from the last of the sun was a tall figure in dark blue. He was standing casually, shoulders relaxed, but at the same time the group FELT the almost wolf-like poise and attention to him. He felt like an wolf about to pounce and tear them apart should they make the wrong move.

Tsume tensed at this, feeling like an mouse about to be hunted, especially when amused blue eyes looked into hers. THIS was an natural alpha, demanding her obedience and acknowledgement as his due.

How her son, born to be an alpha as well, could remain comfortable and relaxed around him, she had no idea. The two males looked at the figure, unconcerned by his sudden appearance and sense of power "yeah, just don't kill her. We have to take her back for trial if she's guilty."

The two seemed unconcerned by the fact he had read their minds when in reality they had consented to it the day before they left. It seemed part of Hinata's fear of leaving the team was due to a fear her teammates would get hurt or killed on a mission without her there to save them, so the blonde had made a suggestion. If they consented to allowing him to take some of their blood, it would allow him to have a mental pathway to their minds. He would never do more than monitor them, everything else would be their own and private-unless it threatened himself or his people or Hinata. Using such a link if they were in danger, he could help.

When they asked how he answered if something happened on a mission and they were captured, he could easily rescue them, and if it came to it, even kill though them to help using their eyes. When they asked what he meant by that, he told Kiba to look at a pile of wood in the fireplace and don't look away.

To have it burst into flames.

Later Kiba had told his other male teammate how he had FELT him moving inside his mind and the burn of his power behind his eyes. It had felt like for a second he was no longer there inside his own head and hoped they would never have to need his help in that way. However both himself AND his teammate consented to the sample. The memory of the act itself was hazy, but had happened.

They hadn't minded the act or even the entire blood-thing, they were ninja. After all, a big part of being what they were involved it, from using it for seals or summoning to the blood spilled during  a mission. They had no illusions about what they were, sometimes they were heroes, sometimes just glorified assassins. Which was why all three humans hadn't bat an eye at the fact he drank blood to live, past the vampire that was. To them he was just another ninja with an kekkai genkai. As clan heirs they knew about being different to everyone else. It was what made them unique and useful.

It was why they had never judged Naruto Uzumaki unlike the civilians and adults for what he held inside him, to them, it was just another gift-or even curse-like each of them had. After all, EVERY ONE of the bloodlines had some sort of weakness or drawback, just that they were generally kept top-secret outside of the clans.

The Inuzuka's senses and personalities were basics animal-dogs-and were prone to the obvious weaknesses. They could be stirred easily to anger, leading to loss of control and  vulnerabilities. Their senses also being enhanced also meant that things such as stink bombs or loud high-pitched noises could stun them, even cause them pain. The Sharingan used too much chakra with each use, leading to sickness as vital parts of the body were deprived and even blindness. It also meant any battle couldn't be sustained for too long or the user would soon become vulnerable. The blood 'tears' released was the blood vessels bursting with the overflow of chakra on one spot.

The Byukugen was similar to the Sharingan, considering their shared ancestry. Reputed for it's vast range only a few knew it had a blind spot. Although it wasn't as damaging as it's 'cousin'-a user logically could use it all day-it also however could lead to blindness. Only those who used too much tended to go completely blind in later years. The mindwalkers like Ino was obvious, when possessing someone their body was completely vulnerable to other attacks.

And so on and so forth.

Many had thought Kiba and Naruto had hated each other, but they had had an 'friendly' rivalry. The dog ninja had never truly desired Hinata, knowing as a true alpha and Inuzuka he was supposed to 'bred' inside his clan. Besides, Hinata had been too passive to him. As an animal-oriented ninja his instincts were to find an stronger type of female, someone who stimulates him, an female who could 'guard' and protect their young if necessary. Someone who would challenge him but still be dedicated to him and their young when they had them. Hinata definitely wasn't that type.

He could see why she was a good match for the blonde, both the demon vessel AND the Carpathian. As the boy they knew he had lashed out with pranks and such because he had grown up alone, without a parents love and surrounded by hate. He had wanted attention and ANY attention would do. Hinata had so much love to give but no one to give it too, even her own clan looked down on her for having feelings-not being the emotionless assholes they were. But she wasn't built like that. Together the two would have fulfilled each others needs.

As a Carpathian he held so much strength and power inside him, but the world of having to kill others of your race, sometimes family or friends, just to protect others-some who would sooner kill you if given the chance-was a bleak and lonely place.

He NEEDED her, Hinata was a healer whether her clan wanted to acknowledge it or not, and only she could heal his heart and soul-even more so if they were right and he had been betrayed by a much if not loved but trusted teammate and supposed friend. The figure moved out from under the shade of the trees and towards them, his movements that of a predator, eyes glowing red. While his entire aura and walk said 'stalking wolf' to the new three, both male teammates remained relaxed.

Over the last three days the team had come to see it as not a threat rather just a part of who and what he was. He was a part of nature, an predator and alpha AS WELL AS a protector. When the two thought of all the race had done 'behind the scenes' to protect and save them-and they didn't even know it-from their own people.... Well, they decided to believe in him. Besides, the connection they now shared with him allowed them to sense easily if he was a threat or not.

Normally he said they were only supposed to sense from him if he opened his mind or the link between them. Somehow though they could FEEL him when they thought about it. It wasn't like the 'path' he shared with Hinata or his parents, but it was still there. Shino had theorized it was because unlike an normal human they had chakra. Perhaps him taking their blood and their acceptance of it and him allowed some of their chakra to taint the blood. It was why they could only pick up feelings or emotions-blood was a part of their body so they could gain 'paths' between their bodies. If they had of been USING their chakra during they could have possibly also developed some sort of mind connection as well, only stronger than what was normal in the blood 'bond' for an human and Carpathian.

Tsume tensed and looked about to fight, but she happened to glance at her son and paused. She may be their clan leader, but Kiba was quickly-as their clans heir and her only son-shaping up to be the alpha, due to take over from her the minute he mated and granted her grandchildren. He had the best senses of any other Inuzuka, which is why he was such a valued tracker, yet he wasn't reacting to the KI. In fact he looked amused rather than threatened, like he knew something they didn't. Again trusting her son she forced herself to relax.

Beside her the male Hyuuga also loosened his stance.

Their pink-haired teammate on the other hand nearly snarled at him. Her expression was viscous. That was until he reached the light of  their campfire and the red receded back to the natural color. Blue, the same blue as the sky he could never see.

Both the Inuzuka and Hyuuga gasped.

There was little doubt in their minds. He was physically the age the blonde would be if he was alive. His hair color, eyes and even the marks on his face were definitely his. Even the slight upturn to the outer corner of the eyes was his.

Beside Tsume the Hyuuga raised his hands "RELEASE!"

Nothing happened.

"RELEASE!" he tried again. By the third time the dog-woman was more than willing to believe he was either the missing blonde with memory loss like her son suggested of someone who looked incredibly like him.

The figure faced the pink haired woman "hello, Sakura" he said casually, hands in pockets and slightly slouched. They blinked at him in shock, he remembered? She blinked at him, frozen "Nar.....Naruto?"

"You seemed surprised. Could it be that my return  screws with your plans? Could it be that my appearance means your betrayal is exposed? All for some delusion of a man you never had in the first place. Sasuke may have betrayed the village but he would have never did what you did, however warped he had more honor than that. He would have been disgusted with and at you."

"DON'T SAY THAT LIKE YOU KNOW HIM!" she screamed at him furiously "YOU ALWAYS ACTED LIKE YOU KNEW HIM! HE LOVED ME FROM THE MOMENT HE SAW ME! IT WAS ALL YOUR FAULT HE LEFT! HE COULDN'T STAND YOU AND YOUR STUPID  RIVALRY!!!"

"Then why didn't he return after I was gone?" he pointed out "if it was me all along why didn't he return, or to you-ever?"

"He couldn't, the Hunter Nin and ANBU....."

"And he couldn't get past them easily? You CLAIM you love each other, yet not only wasn't he willing to risk it for you, he didn't return once myself-his rival was gone. Add to that you seem to have no faith in his abilities AT ALL, least of all stealth."

"SHUT UP!" she screamed "he didn't want to risk them finding out about us and thinking I was also one!! I would have left to be with him in an instant if he asked, I wouldn't have cared what that made me, least of all a traitor!!"

"And yet you made yourself one" Tsume grunted, folding her arms over her chest "by being responsible for the death of an fellow Leaf Nin. By betraying him you branded yourself one." She turned to look at the other female, eyes maniacal "ah but who do you think The Fifth will believe, me her dedicated apprentice or you, an dog." Tsume growled angrily at this insult, only for Kiba to pipe up with "you forget, bitch, dogs are extremely loyal to their alphas. One wouldn't lie."

"And WE are also witnesses to you confession" Neji nodded to both Shino and the blonde. "Ah but I didn't confess to anything" she looked smug "only said he was responsible for Sasuke-kun leaving." Before they could speak the blonde stepped closer "that can be quickly solved" his eyes went red again and when she spun back to look at him the orbs locked to hers, dragging her in. She went absolutely still, not moving a muscle.

Before they could speak HE had. He began to softly SING, his voice deep and beautiful.

"Traitor in act, mind and heart,  
  Reveal the events of the start  
  Minds-eye memories of the past  
  Reveal to all the truth at last."

Before the others could speak, images flashed through their minds.

A mission, set upon by enemy, obviously a trap.

The blonde overpowered by sheer numbers, despite his shadow clones they seemed to know just what to do. Being beaten down and just when he looked about to struggle free and rise again to fight back (he had always been hard-headed, in more ways then one) she struck.

A blow to the back, violent and enhanced by chakra. The entire group winced and were disgusted and pissed off. A blow like that with the strength technique behind it would have pulverized the spine, rendering him an immediate paraplegic if not dead. The look of utter betrayal and horror on his face made them feel helpless, pissed, horrified and saddened. Even more when hearing her reasons and his heart-broken questions why.

Then she turned and left him to the men to finish off, ignoring his pleas and crying.

Once it was over and before they could move again they heard a cry of "YOU BITCH!!!" and before they knew it, the female Hyuuga was flying from her tent, straight at the pink haired other. The blonde managed to catch her up after the first blow and hold her back easily, but the group had the feeling he had let her land the first. Before the pink-haired woman could recover the white eyed male stepped forward and with two fingers poked certain areas of his temporary teammates body, cutting off her chakra so they could safely take her in to custody in case she struggled.

They frowned when she didn't struggle. "I told her to go willingly and not fight" the blonde answered "she will answer any question truthfully, or feel pain." The other two nodded and Neji had to ask "we were informed you had lost your memory. Have you remembered?" He shook his head "I used both my lifemate and her own memories to be able to say all that. Even IF I was the one you think I am, I am no longer HIM." The Hyuuga hesitated, looking at his cousin before saying "it may be in your best interests to BE him."

His eyes narrowed "why do you say so?"

"When Naruto Namikaze and Hinata hime were conceived their fathers organized an marriage contract between them. IF you were Naruto UzumakiNamikaze then there would be nothing the Hyuuga council could do or say to prevent  Haishi sama marrying you two."

Then both the Inuzuka woman and male were turning their temporary-teammate in hands to leave.

"Neji" Hinata called out, calmer. He paused "yes lady Hinata?"

"Thank you" she said simply. He nodded then was gone.

The two males turned back to look at the other "what is it?" Curious Hinata turned her head to look up at him to find him frowning thoughtfully. When she raised an eyebrow at him he answered "I recognized the area from her memories. It is the same one you were headed to when I found you. It is the location I have been guarding. The por.....entrance to my peoples world. If you are correct about his healing factor....."

Shino spoke "the bones of the spine are more delicate and intricate. Even with his healing factor it would have taken him some time to recover from that, let alone walk fully again. Ninja survival training would have taught him how to set up simple traps for rabbits or small animals, and Uzumaki was well known among the village for his tricks and traps."

They understood. The three no longer had any doubts over who the young man was. Hinata felt a surge of protective anger at the mental image of Naruto, bloodied, covered in wounds, some maybe serious, dragging himself away blindly to collapse somewhere different. In reaction to his lifemates anger his own fury sprang forth, turning his eyes red and an snarl lifting his top lip from extended fangs. Just as quickly he regained control, blinking back to blue.

 _ **"There must have been some time between this attack and when we found you"**_ a voice in their heads spoke.

"What the...?!" Kiba yelped, startled.

"My mother" he answered "I opened our link. You can hear her through me."

"Greetings my lady" Shino said in a respectable tone "I am called Shino Aburame, heir to the Aburame clan, Jounin of Kohonahure, The Village Hidden In The Leaves."

Taking a cue from his teammate Kiba spoke "I'm Kiba Inuzuka, alpha of Clan Inuzuka and clan heir. I'm also an Leaf ninja."

"I'm Hinata Hyuuga of clan Hyuuga" Hinata said softly, shyly. This was her soon-to-be mother-in-law "pleased to...meet you my lady."

The feminine voice laughed **_"Greetings to you boys, I am Ivory Malinnov, lifemate to Razvan Dragonseeker"_** the voice changed, becoming caring **_"as for you, my child, welcome to the family. We are so pleased to know our son found you and you have a welcome place here among our family and people. Our prince wishes for me to send you his greetings as well and tell you if you ever have need, just ask."_**

Tears filled the girls eyes at the warmth and love sent to her as well as the pure acceptance. "But..." she choked "I'm not one of you yet."

 _"That is not important"_   another voice spoke out, soft, serene and infinitely gentle _"you are our son's lifemate. Just know when you are ready for that final step, we are all here for you."_ Hinata buried her face in the blonde's shirt, touched to tears.

"Dragonseeker san" Shino said in acknowledgement.

 _"Greetings to you"_   he said in reply.

"Why are you speaking to us now?"

_**"We felt Naruto's turmoil so since your conversion is about something we have information on, decided you need our input."** _

They understood "what did you mean by that comment? How do you know some time happened between?"

An image came to them. An boy a little bit older than the traitors memories wearing black. However the pants DID have an orange strip down the sides. Shino frowned "how long ago was this?"

**_"About nine years and ten months ago."_ **

"So that gave him about five months we don't know about" Shino reasoned "say it took him about four months to fully heal, that leaves one month not accounted for." Kiba frowned "we thought you found him straight away."

_**"No."** _

"Then either he died after the beating  and the fox died with him before his healing kicked in to heal him to bring him back, or he still had it." Hinata drew back to look the blonde straight in the eyes "please Ivory sama, tell us how you met Naruto kun."

******************************************************


	6. 6

There had been rumors lately of something...other than them destroying Vampires. Who or WHATEVER it was had destroyed one of the few remaining of the Five. The Vampires and their minions were in an uproar about it, hunting who or whatever it was but so far unsuccessful. The new Hunter was elusive-they couldn’t sense him, track him or even injure him. Whoever he\she was, they were lethal and seemed to have it out for the evil Carpathians, and by the information they had tricked from an recently turned, this new figure was immune to the effects of the Vampire blood AND the parasites they used to control their victims. Whomever they were, the Carpathians were trying to locate them BEFORE either the Vampires killed it, or it mistook an Carpathian and killed THEM.

The race were struggling to locate the figure before too late.

If the figure couldn’t be turned he may have an natural immunity-like that of his great uncle’s lifemate. If the figure was a female hunter like Ivory, she could be a lifemate to an male and would be in even more danger than if it was male. If it was male then it required protection, whether human or Carpathian.

As the two Carpathians most connected to nature it was up to them to search for this being, their link to Mother Earth could help them more than any other. However they found that Mother Nature was being surprisingly silent about this being. Whoever it was they had the sense she was protecting them, like they were important to her. So much so that she felt the need to protect them from even THEM.

A sudden power sense from up ahead caught their attention.

With a surge of speed they headed towards it. If they could get there fast enough they had a chance of locating the figure.

It was strange, the power was definitely NOT human or Carpathian, neither any of the other races. Instead it felt like a mix between nature and magic. Could it be an Mage? But no, the magic felt different to an mage, and they KNEW what that felt like. Whatever it was was totally unique.

A new race? Some sort of hybrid?

The closer they got the more they sensed fox and nature combined, it was almost like an scent in the air.

Was there an race like the Jaguars or Lycan’s, only fox? Kitsune maybe.

Soon they found themselves approaching the site, the scent of ozone and something burning overpowering the air, the shrieking cries of an pissed-off vampire and the whimper of a child. Exchanging looks they put on even more speed, they had to get there NOW.

Towards the actual site of the ‘battle’ the two automatically changed to vapor and shielded their minds, protecting their presence from the Vampire in case he looked for them. Maneuvering through the trees, using their presence to hide they found their way into the once field of lush trees, now an clearing of smoking, burnt or dead vegetation.

In the middle stood three figures.  
A Vampire, an human boy and a child.

The child was young, nearing her teens clutching the boy in front of her’s jacket as she hid behind him. The boy himself was in his late teens, body tense and in front of hers, turned just slightly to both hide and protect her from the other figure, stance that of defense and obviously someone with training to fight. They recognized an martial arts position. So the boy was trained. He was ALSO obviously their new hunter by the weapons he wore and the tough, unafraid look on his face.

The boy had long blonde hair, blue eyes and strangely enough whisker marks on his face which were thick and stood out. The pupils were not the round circle of human eyes, rather the vertical slits of a cat or snakes eyes. The whiskers and eyes suggested he was something more than human to them, not to mention the strange almost demonic power radiating from him in the form of an red aura.  
______

Shino made a sound which caught their attention.

 ** _“What is it?”_** the female voice asked.

“You are describing the Kyuubi. Whenever Naruto-san used it’s power those features would show. Usually the marks on his face are thin lines and the eyes are normal-human. Add to that previous experience has told us the Uzumaki’s chakra is BLUE, not red.”

“So either the Kyuubi was in control or Naruto-kun had somehow absorbed the Kyuubi itself and was using it’s power” Hinata said. “Or the demon died and Uzumaki absorbed it’s power to survive.”

“Go on” Hinata said.

_______________________

The young mans face was tense, twisted in determination, hands out as he tried to fully block sight of the child, an strange blade in his right hand. It was a knife of some kind, a round ring on one end and the blade was strange with both sides sharp and the base wide leading down into thin sharp point.

The girl was OBVIOUSLY a Carpathian child, or at least part, which gave the two all the most reason to help, to save and protect the two. If the boy was human they needed to protect him and find out WHY he was doing this and if he wasn’t, what exactly he was.

They sent the information back along the path they shared with the Princes’ healer and son-in-law, Gregori.

_“The child is the daughter of Dayan and Corrine, members of The Dark Troubadours. Dayan is the ‘adopted’ brother of my younger brother, so MY brother. If this boy saved Jennifer and is protecting her then he is ours to protect. Aid him and find out why he has taken it on himself to do this.”_

_“We are on our way”_ another male voice said _“he is protecting a Carpathian child from a Vampire despite the risk to himself, for that we owe him a boon.”_ Two new voices came to them, a female and a male, the females pleading emotionally _“please, save our daughter.”_ And from the male _“he is a mortal protecting our child, he obviously cares, we need to know why and who he is.”_

 ** _“He may not be human”_** they supplied ** _“but he is nothing we have ever seen before.”_**

 _“It doesn’t matter”_ he said in answer _“if he is doing something like this, he is of good heart.”_

Before they could continue the boy was moving. Both hands rose, his fingers in an strange sign. There was multiple bursts of smoke in the clearing and when it cleared the two were SURROUNDED with clones, identical clones. There have to be AT LEAST fifty of them!!

From where they watched the two could see one of them-whether original or a clone-crouched down behind the others with the girl wrapped in his arms. He whispered something in her ear and she nodded, accepting his hand and tensing, ready for something.

Suddenly half the clones surged forward, towards the Vampire, weapons drawn and ready. At the same instant both the girl and one with her rose, full-out running for the safety of the trees.

The Vampire screamed in fury, heading towards the running two, but the other half of the group surrounded them protectively while the others moved between, simultaneously swinging at it.

The Vampire only turned into vapor and moved past.

The teen pushed the girl towards the trees and growled “go”. She froze “but you....” His head turned to look at her, “I SAID GO!!!” with a sob the girl fled, Razvan moving to intercept and help her while Ivory moved to help the boy and attack the Vampire.

And froze at what she witnessed.

One of the clones moved the instant the Vampire became solid. In an flash of movement even SHE couldn’t follow an spear of metal rose from the earth at his feet and-surrounded by the red aura-thrust directly through the creature’s chest, impaling the heart completely.

And it was done with a surge of earth energy.

Due to the spears size the heart was completely destroyed. Ivory was about to move forward to destroy the body when it seemed to combust from the inside out, bursting into flames. The Vampire screamed in fury, pain and denial as it burned, struggling to free itself.

When a Vampire died it did everything it could to bring down the hunter and those around it. With one final choked scream it pulled itself free of the spear, summoning an earthquake. The figure and clones stumbled briefly, the rough fall dispelling the copies to reveal the original, the one closest to the Vampire-the same one to summon the spear. The Vampire hissed in hate and lashed out. As Ivory tried to move in between them and save the boy, the close proximity meant no matter what she did she would be too late. Even if she shot him or used her abilities it would be that way.

She just hoped she would be on time to heal him.

The deadly contaminated claws sliced through the skin of his neck, cutting his throat open.

Ivory used all of her speed, hoping to save him and heal the damage, watching the boy choke, hands moving to his skin. At the same time she moved towards him she summoned a storm, incinerating the Vampire with a bolt of lightening.

When she moved to go aid the boy his eyes narrowed on her managing to rasp out "don't come near me," not in English or Carpathian but JAPANESE! But back there he had spoken in English. Why the language change? Was Japanese his native tongue?

His hair was naturally blonde and he didn't LOOK Japanese except for the slight turn at the corner of his eyes. Sure he was short but he was also stocky, not overpoweringly muscular, but enough to show not only was he active but worked at keeping it so.

Ivory frowned. She didn't know what he was, so trying to control his mind may not work. She needed to calm him down, he was bleeding badly, if not severely, but forcing control over his mind when he knew what she was doing would not work. It would cause him to distrust her even more and fight back, even flee, and if their own hunters AND Vampires couldn't find him then they probably wouldn't find him before he bled to death.

The smell of his blood was definitely unique, a potent mix of human, fox, nature and something magical, even the scent made her confused for what he could be, but it made her realize something.

Human blood always had the slight tinge of metal to it, both in smell and taste, but the potent combination of metal, earth, fresh spring water and ozone to the nature energy he wore, not to mention the pleasant smoky wood (like from a campfire) told her he was just like the two of them.

This boy was not only touched by Mother Nature but favored by her. A human as her treasured child, not just that he felt like her blood virtually ran in his veins! That explained the spear of metal and the surge of nature energy before, Mother Nature was moving to aid and protect her chosen. It also explained how he could disappear without a trace, she was moving to cover his tracks for him.

 ** _"Mother, is it true?"_** she questioned it **_"have you claimed him as your own, someone other than our kind, a human?"_**

_"Do not be jealous, daughter. Another version has claimed him. I can do no other than to honor that claim."_

_**"Another version?!"**_   she was confused, what did that mean? Then it suddenly occurred to her. Ivory had been the student of the supposedly most skilled and powerful Mage when she was much younger-Xavier, her lifemates' grandfather. Of course NOW she knew he was never as powerful as he seemed, choosing instead to steal his students work and claim it as his own-not to mention his corrupt soul was probably sold to who knows how many demons and among those studies were other worlds. Some almost identical to their own or near it, some heaven and some hell.

Was it possible that this boy was from one of those worlds. It would explain what he was and why she had no idea what he was. If he had been marked or claimed by HIS worlds Mother Nature, it made her words make more sense. He was her child, just another version of it.

Before anyone else could speak there was a cry of "Naru!" and the girl was flying into him, arms wrapped around him, sobbing "I was so scared you'd die!"

Ivory blinked as Razvan casually walked towards her behind the girl, the boy again moving the girl behind him. She spoke gently **_"Jennifer I'm Ivory, a friend of your uncle Gregori and I need your help, or rather Naru needs your help."_**

"Shut up!" the boy growled, however the girl looked out at her "wh....what do you mean?"

_**"Look at his neck."** _

The girl did and gasped in horror "NARU!"

"I'll heal" he rasped.

 _ **"But not before you bleed to death"**_ Ivory answered. The girl looked sad "I'm not like mom or dad, I can't heal with my saliva."

 _ **"We can help"**_ Ivory said **_"but he won't let us."_**

"Help him, please" she looked up into the boy's face "Naru let them! You are my best friend, I don't want you to die!"

Ivory blinked, she had assumed the boy had just FOUND and rescued the girl, but now it seemed that she had been sneaking out to visit him all along. She wondered how that had been happening and no one knew about it and for how long. Children of their race were few and far between-girl children all the more so, every one was guarded fiercely.

Suddenly four more figures appeared in the clearing, three males and a female. Two of the males were definitely related, one stockier than the other, one older with slashing silver eyes. The other male had soft charcoal colored hair and stood beside the woman, arms around her shoulders comfortingly.

The girl saw them, cried "mom, dad!" and ran out from behind the boy, throwing herself into their arms to sob and pour out the story of what happened.

Once the two females had calmed down the male released them and stepped towards them, eyes on the boy grateful and gentle "you saved my only child, I owe you a boon" he motioned at the older man with silver eyes "allow our healer to aid you, I swear on my life he will not harm you."

The girl looked at him pleadingly "please Naru, please let uncle Gregori heal you, I don't want you to die." (A.N.-While Dayan and Gregori are not genetically related, Darius DID raise the Dark Troubadours, making them a family unit, making Gregori and Dayan essentially adopted brothers.)

The boy looked into the slashing silver eyes, his own hard "I don't trust you."

"I only wish to heal you, nothing more. Afterwards you can go wherever you wish, we will not try to stop you" the man moved not a single muscle except his mouth, holding himself loose and relaxed to seem non-threatening.

"You saved my daughter, let us repay you in this small way."

"Naru doesn't trust anyone, someone he thought was a friend hired guys to kill him and hurt him so he couldn't fight back."

The group seemed concerned "you are injured? Beyond what the Vampire did?!" the healer looked alarmed "allow me to heal you however you are hurt."

The rest of the group looked the boy over, he didn't SEEM injured in any other way. _"His legs"_ Razvan spoke to her, _"it is not weakness from blood-loss that has him standing in such a way."_

Ivory looked him over. He had locked his legs in position to remain standing, not from tension at their presence. His body, despite the awkward angle was shaking and by the way his back trembled, shoulders tensed she REALIZED it wasn't just his legs but the problem was with his back.

"Please Naru" the girl pleaded, eyes watering "please, I don't want to loose you."

The boy's sigh bubbled with blood in his throat "alright" his eyes narrowed on the healer "but if you do anything funny, accept my kunai in your side."  
_________________________________

Shino questioned "what was his reaction to your healers method of healing?"

**"He didn’t seem to react at all except to frown. The healer was connected to my mind at the time, hoping by describing what he was seeing I would know who and what he was. I told him what Mother Nature had said and what I had seen him do. The boy's back was scarred up, messed up, it was a wonder he could move at all."**

The three ninja nodded, they all now knew why.

**_"The healer fixed up what he could of it after healing his neck, but he was mostly worried about signs of an ancient unusual seal in his stomach area. He said there was signs of some sort of massive power once located there and weaved through his entire system, but the way it hung in tatters suggests that something was torn out. He said traces of it still filled his body-some areas overpoweringly so and others not so or none at all-but it was still there."_ **

Shino frowned "the power itself, or just traces of it."

**_"That he couldn't tell. He said it could have been destroyed and traces of it lingered, mixed with his own, or it had freed itself and was hiding buried inside him."_ **

The male voice spoke _"the healer is supposed to be the most skilled of our race in the healing arts and things long forgotten or forbidden. If HE says he doesn't know....."_

They understood this, it would be like the Fifth Hokage and THEIR healer saying she had no idea how to heal someone.

_"It was while he was healing the boy that we found out how young Jennifer was able to be out with him while also with the other kids."_

Hinata suddenly giggled "let me guess, Shadow Clone."

**_"If that's what you call it, yes."_ **

"What was the Uzumaki's reaction to this knowledge?"

 _ **"He yelled."**_  
________________

"YOU DID WHAT!? I TOLD YOU TO USE THAT ONLY IN EMERGENCIES TO PROTECT YOURSELF!!"

The girl winced "but I....."

His eyes narrowed on her "no buts, that was irresponsible, not to mention you LIED to me. You told me your parents knew you came out here." He looked at the two adults "I apologize, I taught her that jutsu so she could protect herself, NOT sneak out of the house like a rebellious teen. I thought ill of you both because of it."

The two nodded, accepting the apology and the male asked "what is this....jutsu?"

"Where I come from we learned to harness the unity of mind and spirit into what we call Chakra. With Chakra we can weave jutsus. There is another energy-Nature-but only myself and Erosan know how to use that one. The one I taught her allows us to essentially create clones identical in every way to the original-abilities, chakra, everything. The ability to create clones is standard among us, but those are nothing but illusions, these are real, solid, unless the receive an strong blow."

They understood what he was saying. The reason they hadn't been able to tell the difference between the clone with the kids and their carers and the real thing was it was identical in every way, thoughts, moves excreta UNLESS something happened to mean it received a blow of some kind.

"Only someone with a lot of chakra can do it, only a few I know can. It can be dangerous though, which is why I told her only in emergencies."

They frowned at him, concerned "dangerous how?"

"The technique is Forbidden for good reason. The clone is a perfect copy in every way and once it is dispelled all it's memories return to the user. The copy can do everything the original can, know everything and is perfectly indistinguishable in every way, but in order to create it the user has to split their chakra between themselves evenly. One clone-cut in half, two clones-a third and so on."

They understood. If the user didn't have A LOT of power they were splitting their strength up. Which left the question. How powerful was he that about fifty clones didn't make him break a sweat?  Jennifer-who had been doing this for who knows how long-was making herself weaker. No wonder he was upset with her!

The boy suddenly grunted once in pain, there was an audible crack and he stood a little straighter. Obviously the healer was now at work there.

"What caused this type of damage?" the healer asked softly "it is only recent and shows signs of incorrect healing done at an short amount of time, which is why you are in such pain and having such difficulty with movement."

The boy's face shut down "none of your business."

From where he stood Razvan asked "do you mean he was healed by someone inexperienced?"

"No, I mean his own body did it, but because the healing was done so fast it did not happen correctly, leaving massive scar-tissue clumps that was seriously hindering movement. I am frankly amazed he can even move."

Then inside their heads the healer added _"it must also be excruciating for him to even move, both then and now."_  
_____________________

"It is possible his body didn't know HOW to heal itself" Shino said.

"How do you mean?" they asked.

"Think about it. They way it was described to me was the seal prevented all but a small constant amount of chakra from leaking into his body since the day the Forth sealed him inside. THAT was barely hours after his birth. Later it was  tampered with, opening the seal wider. THAT very chakra would have been used to heal him all his life, the power preserving and protecting its host."

The others nodded in understanding. "So with the nine tailed gone, there was nothing there to heal him and his own body attempted to, but was unable to do it properly."

Shino nodded "it is similar to the ninja system. There are healers and ninja. While someone like Tsunade-hime CAN fight as an ninja, her skills are more towards healing. A LOT of ninja CAN heal, but only basic injuries. So any normal ninja couldn't heal, while healers can't preform complex jutsus." (yes I know characters like Tsunade and Sakura are good at both, but from what I've seen they and Kabuto are exceptions to the rule, MOST healers-or medinin-hang around the village. Even  Sakura when she was being trained spent more times in the the village then out. Which is stupid I think. EACH TEAM, no matter what village, should have at least ONE healer-or someone trained in that way, it would help survival rates go up.)

**_"Every Carpathian hunter knows how to heal themselves. However OUR healer is just as an skilled hunter as any other male."_ **

The other voice seemed amused _"even some of our women hunt now. My sister is one as well as my lifemate."_

The group realized he was talking about the woman they were listening to.

Which means she raised Naruto with HER skills and knowledge, combined with whatever his father had.

"What happened next?"

 _ **"We knew as soon as the healer finished he would want to leave, but we couldn't let him. He was in serious danger, the Vampires were actively hunting him and while his skills were unknown to us, he couldn't possibly survive much longer. The Vampires were working together and master Vampires controlled and manipulated the newly turned into wearing down a hunter and striking when they were vulnerable. This would undoubtedly kill him. But we didn't think he would believe us or accept any offers of shelter. So the question was....how do we get him to accept our protection?"**_  
___________________________________

 _"That's easy, offer him a job"_ the new feminine voice spoke. They immediately FELT the healers reaction before he spoke back _"Savannah....."_

Savannah Dubrinsky, eldest child of the Prince and the man's lifemate spoke back, voice just as firm _"you didn't think I would just LET you go out without knowing what you were doing, did you? As you are so fond of telling me, I am your lifemate-therefore I'm always a shadow in your mind. Offer him a job, that way you have an excuse to keep him close and can earn his trust."_

_"And what sort of job do you suggest?"_

_"Bodyguard, for the children, against the Vampires and their agents trying to hurt them. That way it will appeal to his sense of usefulness and heroics. It's just the sort of thing he'd want."_

_"How do YOU know he wishes to be a hero?"_

She laughed _"I scanned him of course while you healed him. He was hurt badly many times in the past-but recently was the worse. However he has this pure untainted spirit that I've never felt before. Sure he's male and can lash out and do all the things an normal man is capable of, but there is this core of beauty too him, it's amazing. Also part of him is DEFINITELY some sought of animal. I don't know what exactly but it's canine related."_

 _"Like a fox?"_ they asked.

_"I'd say so, yes. He has the loyalty and an sense of honor related to nature and the canine. It is why he tried to protect Jennifer even from you all until her parents showed up. He may not admit, but he sees her as a little sister, pack. Offer him food, shelter, anything he needs in return for guarding our children of a day, tell him how dangerous it is for them and how only our human friends can protect them from the Vampires minions. I believe he will accept if he thinks he can protect them better. He'll want Jennifer safe."_

_"It makes sense"_ Corrine, Dayan's lifemate and Jennifer's mother said _"I want him to come, Dayan, he's needs us as much as we need him. Savannah said he was hurt in the past-recently-and Jennifer said he was betrayed by some he trusted. They probably were the SAME PERSON. He deserves to be able to trust people again, to be cared for and loved. I have you, lifemates have each other, we are there even before we find each other. He has no one."_

Jennifer looked up pleadingly at her father _"he needs us, dad, he's all alone-the only one of his kind."_

Instead of asking what exactly that was he moved closer catching the boys attention "where are you currently resident?"

When the boys eyes narrowed to snap something he added "we wish to know because we are prepared to offer you food, lodgings and clothes as well as everything you need for a job." The boy's eyes widened "a....job?!"

Dayan nodded "you are obviously skilled with handling an Vampire, human or not. Lately they have been targeting our children-as you have seen. We can only do so much since we are unable to be there for them during daylight hours and so rely on mortals to protect them. YOU are mortal, yes, but you are experienced at killing them to protect others while our human allies are not. If YOU were there for them, it would be much easier for us to rest, knowing someone skilled was there to protect them. In exchange we can give you food, lodgings, clothes, anything you need. Even money if necessary."

Corrine blinked "you could stay with Jennifer in safety, she wouldn't need to sneak out anymore to see you."

Dayan looked at his daughter, eyes slightly narrowed, his stern expression saying to her 'we'll talk about THAT later, young lady' causing said girl to wince visibly, realizing how much trouble she was in.

The boy hesitated, obviously torn. She could see it in him-the need to trust verses the desire not too coupled with the instincts to remain out in nature where he felt safe and protected verses the human desire for companionship. Then there was the-she suspected-fox (?) part of him that desired pack-or in case of a fox-a skulk. Foxes were part of the canine kingdom and shared many traits with them, loyalty one of them.

Finally the desire won out and he sighed “fine, as long as during the time I’m working they do as I say. I don’t want to be chasing them around while trying to protect them” he looked pointedly at the child.

They agreed.

It took mere days for the children to trust him, even the most cynical or distrusting of the lot. “He’s like us” one of Sara and Falcon’s adopted street urchins said “he never knew his parents and had no one to care for himself. We had each other, he had no one.”  
_________________________

“Your Prince’s daughter was correct about the Uzumaki” Shino spoke. Hinata added softly “he had this....inner light. He could just make you believe ANYTHING.”

“He could see the good in anyone, even when they couldn’t see it in themselves. In fact his first mission he got two SS class criminals to turn against their employer” Kiba said.

“He not only persuaded Lady Tsunade to return to the village when NO ONE else could-least of all her ex-teammate AND sensei-but to become the Fifth Hokage.”

**_“Hokage?”_ **

“The leader of their village” Naruto explained.

“Lady Tsunade Senju is the Fifth. Her grandfather was the Second and one of the founders and the First was her granduncle. Naruto’s father was the Forth. The Senju are related to the Uzumaki, Naruto. His mother was Uzumaki and related to the Second’s wife-Maito Uzumaki.”

“Lady Tsunade not only saw Naruto-kun as an type of relative but like a little brother. It hurt her so much when he disappeared. She was constantly sending ninja out to find traces of him. Even now she is still doing anything to find him.”

“Now we know as Lady Tsunade’s apprentice Sakura was trusted. She probably vandalized ANY chance of gaining information” Kiba grunted. To him as a dog-like ninja her behavior was uncomprehendable. Naruto was always loyal and even risked his life many times to save hers AND to bring back her obsession, yet THIS was how she treated him.

“Apparently is was.....my birth father who placed the buuji inside...me” he was still unwilling to think of himself as this child they knew, he didn’t remember any of it and as far as he was concerned he was an Carpathian.

_**“Why?”** _

“The Kyuubi was an being of pure chakra. It attacked our village and was slaughtering our people. The Forth did what he had to do to save everyone. His wife Kushina was the previous host, only an Uzumaki can contain the creature, any one other would die should it be extracted, but it was released during child birth-her seal was too weak to contain it while she was so weak. The Forth sacrificed his soul and chakra to the Shirigami in exchange for the strength of the seal strong enough to contain it. During the sealing the Kyuubi tried to kill Naruto so both Minato Namakiaze-sama and Kushina-hime jumped between to protect him. The Kyuubi was sealed-half inside Uzumaki and the other inside Minato-sama when the death god took him as payment.”

_**“So because Naruto was conceived and born to the previous host, his parents knew he would survive the sealing where another would not.”** _

“The Forth believed never ask of another what you aren’t willing to sacrifice yourself. He wanted Uzumaki to be seen in the village as a hero for containing the very thing that threatened them. By living he was protecting everyone, maintaining their lives safe from the threat. However humans are suspicious and superstitious by nature. They used Uzumaki to take their pain out on, treating him as if HE was the demon. The only reason they didn’t do more than alienate and call him names was the Third passed a law.”

_**“And you? How did YOU feel about this?”** _

“My clan saw no point mistreating him. We knew what it is like living with something....else under your skin” his kiki hummed as if in answer to the unspoken question.

Hinata spoke “the Abrahume are not exactly.....sociable people. They are mostly logical and taught from when they are young that they need extreme control over their emotions. The kiki react to their host, emotions would just....”

“Make things difficult” the bug-nin supplied “please continue Ivory-sama. How long before you were forced to change him?”

**_“A week only.”_ **

“Then, please go on, Ivory-sama.”  
____________________________________________

 _“DADDDYYYY!!!”_ The scream of pure terror, grief and sorrow awoke every single Carpathian, not just in the mountains but overseas as well, they were echoed by the very earth itself crying out in pain and horror. The following sound of children sobbing and breaking down caused every male, even unmated, to hiss in fury at their pain while every female sobbed in empathy. However Ivory herself spoke urgently _“Jennifer, what is wrong?”_ The sobbing just continued so Razvan spoke out, voice soft, serene and soothing, compelling “tell us what is wrong, child, or we can not help.”

 _“They’re killing him!"_ she sobbed.

 _“Who? Tell us what is happening?”_ she said soothingly.

 _“Naru”_ she sobbed _“the ghouls attacked us. Naru pushed us into a room and put a seal on it. They can’t get to us but there is too many for him, they’re killing him!”_

 _“We are on our way”_ the voice was deep, melodic and compelling, male Carpathian but none that Ivory knew, followed by another she did _“as am I.”_ The first she had no idea about but the second was one dear to her, one of the five men she loved as brothers, who helped raise her. “Manolito” she said softly, but who was the other?

 _“Dominic”_ the other voice answered _“I have been away from our home land for a long time. I returned with my lifemate when informed of the situation. I was informed members of my clan I was unaware existed are here now and am currently searching for them. Two niece, a grand nephew and niece and their lifemates.”_

_“Clan name?”_

_“Dragonseeker.”_ Razvan went completely still but the man was going on _“you are Razvan. Our Prince informed me of your past. YOU are my grandnephew. I am proud of your strength in such an situation as the one Xavier trapped you in. Rhiannon was my sister.”_ The two had a feeling he meant LITTLE sister. He felt old, VERY old. A feminine voice spoke _“We are all related.”_

_“What do you mean?”_

_“My name is Solange Sangria. My cousin is Juliette.”_ Ivory nodded, she was correct. Juliette was the lifemate to Riordan, one of the five De La Cruz brothers who she had been raised around. So in a way the woman was related to her while the man was related to her lifemate.  
_______________________________

“Wait a minute” Kiba said “I thought your kind can’t pysically be out in daylight.” Hinata spoke “except very early in the morning and late in the afternoon.”

“Yeah” Kiba agreed “but you said they were headed there in broad daylight. And what’s a ghoul?”

“Wait a minute” Hinata looked thoughtful “you told me your mothers adopted brother Manolito was one of those other races, didn’t you? The Carpathian\Lycan’s. Is that why?” Naruto nodded.

“So the mixed breed allows them immunity to sunlight” Shino said “What about your great granduncle?”

**_“His lifemate Solange is a powerful woman. She is an Jaguar warrior and princess of her kind. Her blood is unique and strong and can kill the very parasites the vampire use to identify each other and control humans. When she mated her male her blood and....gifts gave him the ability to tolerate the sunlight to an extent. That plus how old he is....”_ **

“HOW old is he?”

**_“His true age is unknown but it is suspected he is one of the oldest living Carpathians. A couple of thousand years, at least one complete millennium.”_ **

Shock filled them.

_**“An Carpathian is considered a child until they reach at least their two hundred and fiftieth year. We age differently to humans.”** _

“But....” Kiba couldn’t wrap his head around the concept of living so long. Shino frowned “so the children are not-by our standards-children.”

**_“Only a few are full-blooded Carpathians. Most of them are human children adopted by Carpathians from either abusive or neglected lives”  They could practically FEEL the glare she sent them “you humans throw away children like they are rubbish. If you knew what it was like to never be able to have them, or worse, have to love them then loose them in their first year of birth you would see them for the treasures they are.”_ **

Kiba couldn’t hold it in much longer “what are Ghouls?!”

**_“Humans who either give up their mortality or are victims of the vampire. They infect them through the parasites they carry-usually through the vampire’s blood-and completely control them. They are mindless and programmed for one purpose and one purpose only and will do EVERYTHING to complete their objective. Imagine being set upon by an family member or even your lover who is set on killing you, no life in their eyes, moving on at you endlessly even as they are injured even loose limbs. They can not be saved or stopped, they are no longer who you knew or thought they were, just puppets.”_ **

_“The vampire use them as cannon fodder. They are especially used when the vampire can not be there, like during the day time.”_

“Unlike a Carpathian an vampire is chained to the night, they can not go out in ANY sunlight and are forced to use puppets to do their will at those times.”

“So, the Vampires sent these...Ghouls to attack the safe house where the children were sheltered and Naruto fought them to protect them, only something happened and he was overpowered. As the child said “they are killing him.” They sensed the woman’s nod. “And by your connection to the Earth energy you knew that he was definitely badly injured.”

_**“Yes.”** _

“Go on.”  
__________________________________

 _"We are here"_ a new voice spoke and Ivory blinked when she recognized one of her lifemates daughters, Skyler. Instead of questioning the fact her lifemate allowed such an fragile soul out into a dangerous situation she asked "What do you see?"

 _"The building is in flames"_ her lifemate Dimitri said _"the entire building is engulfed, almost burnt down, yet I sense the children are safe. I can not sense the boy who saved them in any way. Whether that means he has passed over, not in the building or I simply can not sense his presence I am uncertain. The Prince informs me of the fact he is not completely human and no vampire or Carpathian can sense his presence in any way, he may still be inside."_

 _"Jennifer said she can see him from where the children are located, laying on the floor"_ the voice belonged to Dayan as the parents all tried to calm and soothe their children, genetic or not. To the Carpathian one families child is equally loved by ALL the race.

 _"So find the children and you will find the boy"_   Ivory said and the Carpathian agreed _"yes. She said he used some sort of fireball attack he summoned from his mouth-phoenix flower or something-to completely engulf the Ghouls after he was seriously wounded. It was the last of his strength and he appears not to be moving now."_

Another voice spoke, soft, smooth but full of power and authority. _"They are located in a basement safe room, the boy is on the floor of the stairs between that area and the upstairs. He used the narrow passage to force the ghouls into a confined space for better effect. A sound tactic. He used some sort of seal to surround the safe-room completely so not even the Vampires could get in. Every Ghoul who tried was instantly burnt up-not that many escaped the boy's attack or the burning building to try."_

 _"My prince"_ the man, Dimitri said respectfully _"how do you know this?"_

 _"My brother was visiting at the time"_ said another but feminine voice _"he has SOME experience with Vampires and Ghouls but when they attacked he wouldn't let him fight. He locked him in with the kids."_

 _“We have arrived”_   the ancient voice said _“We see what was described. I will summon a storm to put the flames out while the others try to locate the bunker.”_

 _“Others are arriving to aid us”_ Dimitri said _“My brother and his lifemate, anyone who can be out safely is aiding us.”_

The Prince spoke again _“Gregori and I will be there just as soon as possible. Do what you must to aid the boy, we all owe him for the life of our children. He is just a child himself, yet also a warrior, his actions have proved his true soul as well as my daughter has seen his true heart, he does not deserve such a death.”_

Taking this as an decree the ancient Carpathian called a storm, the rain so thick and heavy the flames had no chance and were gone in mere seconds. As each section went out the Carpathians moved, digging through the rubble or using their ability to move the earth to try and locate the entrance to the basement. Each Carpathian or Panznicii De Toate worked as a unit, seeking either the entrance or some way inside. The basement area was made of metal-except the stairs which was wood.

Suddenly Skyler called out _“here”_. The others moved to her side to find she had uncovered a section of metal, slightly glowing.

 _“Do not touch it”_ Dominic warned _“we have no idea how this boy’s seal works. It could harm anyone who touches it.” She shook her head “I doubt it. The children are in there and Joie’s brother. If he did it that way, he risked killing any of the ones inside.”_ She cocked her head and looked intent for a second before she moved before her lifemate could stop her. She had laid her palm directly over the glowing metal. Nothing happened.

While her lifemate berated her for the risk she took she continued, moving along the surface, past the uncovered area, eyes intense as the earth directed her. Finally she stopped _“here”_ she turned to look at them _“it’s safer here. Anywhere else will cave in the area.”_

Immediately the group began on the area she indicated, knowing that while the children were safe and protected inside the sealed safe room, the boy could be killed before they could help him by falling debris through if they dug anywhere else. Suddenly Dominic seemed to change his mind. His head cocked, he looked thoughtful and he was suddenly gone, driving into the hole they had created and deeper into the earth. Skyler copied, followed by her lifemate and the others. They could hear it now, the heartbeat. It was flagging, skipping a beat then suddenly speed up, the breathing in the lungs hissing out or suddenly cease.

They came out in an small open area underground, held up by wood walls, roof and floor. A set of ruined burnt stairs were on the right, collapsed wood blocking the way out. On the left they saw the metal door of the safe room, an bloody symbol drawn over it. Piles of ash littered everywhere, the smell of burnt flesh hung thickly in the air, remains of the Ghouls. Crumpled into a pile in front of the safe room’s doors was a figure-blonde, black and orange, and red SO MUCH red.

The scent of blood overpowered them, but they could see what was meant by him not being completely human. They scented mortal-human, fox but also under that was the joint smell of earth and power. SOMETHING was growing as the boy was dying, something dark and foreboding. They didn’t know if it was from the earth, as in the death of the boy would have some severe affect on nature, or the boy himself.  
____________________________________

Shino frowned “It seemed that the tailed beast was still present, despite our theories.”

_“What do you mean?”_

“The way you describe it. The tailed beasts are trapped into the host’s body until either extracted or the host dies, however extraction MEANS the hosts death. If you were sensing some sort of foreboding as he is dying, it implies the demon was still trapped inside and preparing to escape the minute he passed.”

“Then why would the bi.....SHE assume the spirit was gone unless it was taken?”

“Perhaps those she...'sold?’ ‘hired?’ were supposed to extract the being but either didn’t know how or he escaped them.” He looked at the blonde “do you FEEL anything inside you right now? Another presence?”

He snorted “ALL Carpathian males have a presence inside them, an animal-a darkness crouching ready to pounce or take control the older we get. It is our lifemates that allow us to control it, to maintain our ‘human’ soul.”

“So you have no idea if this animal inside is you or the fox. It is possible when you were turned it became part of you instead of a separate soul.” The blonde shrugged. Shino spoke again “Ivory hime, have you ever seen that power again in him? The same as you saw that day.”

 ** _“No”_** she said **_“however that does not mean it is no longer part of him.”_**

“True” Shino said “during this transition it is possible it was powerful enough or enough of a trauma that his body assimilated the creature to survive.”

The woman hesitated then spoke thoughtfully _ **“It may be that is true, that he is supposed to be as he is. It would explain what happened next.”**_

“What did?”

________________________________

While the ancient Carpathian moved to examine the seal everyone else moved to examine the boy. “This is a very compact design” he reported “like nothing I have ever seen before. He either is an expert in a new type, or it is an ancient design known to only himself and\or his kind.”

__________________________________________

“It is a combination of both” Shino answered “ninja have been using seals in every day life for centuries” he pulled out a scroll, unrolled it and opened the seal to reveal an kunai before relocking it inside and putting the scroll away “however Uzumaki WAS traveling with Jiriaya-sama for three years and the sannin is an seals expert. It was he who trained The Forth Hokage and learned the seal he used to seal the Kyuubi with.”

 ** _“So this.....sannin knew ancient seals, but also he would have created his own. And since he trained him, it is possible he created his own as well as used the ones trained in”_** Shino nodded.  
___________________________________________________

“He’s very hurt” Skyler said with a murmur of concern, “he’s on the brink of death. SOMETHING is trying to heal him, I feel the energy in his wounds, but it is struggling” her hands glowed as she tried to heal him, Fenris and his lifemate also kneeling beside her to lay his hands on the boy and attempt to aid her. “We are trying to aid him but our attempts are bouncing off him.”

“Gregori has healed him once before” The Prince, Mikhail Dubrinsky, said “it is possible the power trying to heal him is taking your energy as an attack and trying to protect him. However since Gregori has already healed him it may recognize him and allow him to aid him. Do what you must to keep him alive until he can arrive.”

A soft but grieving voice came into both Ivory and Razvan’s mind _“He will not survive, my children.”_

_**“Mother Earth?”** _

_“He will not survive if they do not change him. His body is too torn, his mind in shatters. He feels what is happening and is too frightened to take the step back from the precipice. YOU must change him, daughter, it is the only way. If they attempt it he will either cross fully over into that realm or go insane. Only you, as my child, have the strength and connection to myself to allow him to survive.”_

Immediately Ivory reported this too them _**“he wouldn’t survive long enough to be healed. He wouldn’t even survive the healing. Mother Earth says I must change him, bring him over.”**_

“Why you?”

**_“Mother Earth said anyone else and he will either cross over or go insane. It’s his connection to her, only the two of us are compatible enough.”_ **

“Hum” Gregori said thoughtfully “his connection to nature must make him too different to us. However with Ivory and Razvan being chosen as her children, their blood would be as close to his as we can get. Keep the boy alive.”

The two earth’s chosen felt mother nature feeding them strength, energy, willing them to be able to move in the afternoon sun. The earth around them moved, creating a tunnel deep inside the soil so they could move through it and towards the area without exposure to the light. _ **“we are on our way.”**_

They moved quickly, reaching out to touch his mind, aware that once they changed him he would be considered their son. However it would be.....interesting to do so. The boy was different, not just in what he was but obviously he knew things they could learn that may help their race. If the boy’s blood naturally rejected the parasites and he was unable to be mentally controlled it was possible he would be unique among them. His knowledge might help them.

They moved as fast as they could, aware of the boys lagging heartbeat and breathing, they didn’t have much time.

They came up from under the room, next to the group around the boy. He was crumpled near the door, covered in blood, clothes torn and slashed with various wounds and injuries showing through. Everything from bites, burns, slashes and scratch marks. They blinked when they spied something else though, just over his stomach, that resembled an tattoo. It was an spiral pattern with eight lines of symbols coming out. What was strange was even though the mark was slashed apart it seemed to be repairing itself.  
______________________________________

"The eight trigrams seal" Shino answered "it is what traps the nine tailed inside. If it was repairing itself then the seal was still working." He frowned "unfortunately that could be why he wasn't healing. It was draining his chakra in order to repair itself. It is supposed to use the ninetails, but IF the Uzumaki is no longer the holder it would use HIS."

"So" Hinata started "if the buji was removed or Naruto-kun.....absorbed it, it would use his own chakra to repair the seal. But by doing so it was preventing him from healing."

The bug-nin nodded, looking at the blonde "do you still have it? Do you still bare the seal?" The blonde nodded "however it does nothing. It is like a birthmark now. We have examined or tried stimulating it-nothing."

"It could be because you haven't tried chakra-or that there is no longer a seal for the nine tailed. When we return to Kohona, Tsunade-hime can summon Jariaya-sama to examine it." If this blonde bore the seal it was DEFINITELY him. Only Minato-san had made that seal, no one else. It was unique and also dangerously deadly, he doubted another village would be able to replicate it since it showed up on him only in certain circumstances.

Then there was the...contamination from the snake-sannin......

The blonde frowned at him "contaminated HOW?"

"Jariaya-sama said there was an additional seal added to it, kind of unlocking it partly. The only ones capable of such an act would have been himself, the Forth or the snake-sannin and his old teammate Orochimaru. It opened the seal part way. Originally the Uzumaki was just supposed to have a small fraction of the ninetailed's chakra constantly flow for his use, but after the snake-nin it opened to allow the fox's chakra to leak out past the safe level. Unless he kept control, he risked the fox completely controlling him. And the Uzumaki wasn't known for controlling himself."  
________________________________________________

**_"The entire process of changing from human to Carpathian is painful and often seen as humiliating, which is why a male will do so in three stages, to minimize trauma and get the body used to it. This way the lifemate has time to adapt to the differences before the final step. A male can soothe her and aid her through it, and by that time the female will trust him enough to relax and let him guide her. When safe the male will put her to sleep so she doesn't have to experience the rest and when she awakens, she is fully in our world._ **

**_However we didn't have that option here. He was already traumatized, had no reason to trust us, was close to death and then we were trying to force someone not fully human and not of a race we knew into a transition we had no idea we were sure would work._ **

**_We attempted to try and start the transition, but he fought us every step of the way-instinctively perhaps but still fought us and we were running out of time. Even when the Prince and healer arrived to help with healing, he fought them. When the healer attempted to put him to sleep, he only lashed back with his mind more violently. At least until SHE interfered."_ **

"Who?"

**_"Jennifer. She and those stuck in the room had been watching through the cameras and the children were afraid if he fought us he would die. So they had switched on the external speakers and started speaking, pleading with him to stop, to let us help him. They were telling him if he let us turn him he would finally have a family like them, people who didn't care who or what he was, we would love him for WHO he was. Whether it was their voices or their words he relaxed and let us continue."_ **

"If the Uzumaki lost his memory, how did you free them from the seal protecting them?"

**_"Fortunately he had shown the seal to Jennifer earlier and showed her how to cancel it-just in case. She gave instructions to Dominic over the speakers. Because her voice was allowing us to work, she stayed to keep him calm while the rest of the children were lead away with Jubal Sanders. During the transition the entire Carpathian race all over the world sent him their feelings, caring, kindness, love, everything they could to encourage him."_ **

_"She was very upset when he awoke with no memory or knowledge, even of her, we were forced to in essence rebuild his mind. The only thing he seemed to remember was his name and the basics-how to breathe, walk, touch and hold, not even talk. It was like he had regressed to that of a newborn baby. Even then a baby has a sense of self."_

"Humm" Shino hummed "the trauma must have driven him deep into his mind. He saw Naruto Uzumaki as too damaged. All that trauma happened to IT, not Naruto Dragonseeker. Naruto Dragonseeker was a Carpathian, loved by his adopted parents and equally cared for by his people. He had everything and WAS everything the Uzumaki wasn't or didn't."

Hinata suddenly spoke, "Ivory-sama, did he....say anything while you were working on him?"

 ** _"He mumbled something both before and after, something none of us could understand."_** Hinata looked upset "Ivory-sama, exactly how long ago was it that he changed and what time?" When she was told she looked crushed "I thought that was a dream."

Everyone looked at her "what do you mean?"

She looked like she was going to cry, Naruto instinctively surrounding her in his arms, body and warmth and sent her comforting thoughts "tell us what has you so upset, jela lamti."

"That day I dreamed of you" she said with a sniff "you were covered in blood and writhing in pain. Your throat was.....I could see...but you spoke to me, begged me to help you, you said that 'they' were killing you. I wanted to help you, but I couldn't." This time tears flowed "I reached for you, but it was like there was this wall between us! Then you were gone and I felt this void and I knew you were dead!!!" she cried harder for a minute or two before continuing "Neji niisan woke me up. He said I was screaming in my sleep. I told him what happened and he said it was just a dream, that my feelings for Naruto-kun and my fear, concern and anxiety over his being missing was showing over in my dreams. He said I had to believe he was still alive, that he would return to us. He tried to convince me that if he returned to the village and I had convinced myself he was dead, it would make things awkward between us. If it was awkward then how would I be able to tell him how I felt? It took hours to sleep again, and when I did I dreamed of him again. Only this time he looked older." She shifted to look up at him "you smiled at me and said you were complete-as you were meant to be. That when you came back, WE would be as we were meant to be."

"What did he mean by that?" She frowned thoughtfully as she wiped her eyes on the cloth he offered her "I'm not sure. He said something like 'soulmates' and 'born in the wrong world' and mentioned nature."

"So he was saying you were both soulmates who were born in the wrong world, and something about nature, perhaps nature was trying to fix it."

"What are you thinking?" they asked the bug-nin.

"You claim that you are both lifemates" he looked at the blonde who nodded. "Some humans believe  in soulmates, two people destined to be together. It is sounds almost exactly like your description of lifemates. Perhaps to Hinata that is what you said. Then he-you rather-mentioned born in the wrong world. Is it possible one of your souls was somehow born in the wrong one and the other was forced to follow. You said you were complete and when you returned you would both be 'as you were meant to be'. If you bring Hinata over as a Carpathian you will logically be 'complete' so to speak."

"So you're saying" the blonde frowned "that for some reason we were born in the wrong world, perhaps because of our low birth rate, and my betrayal by someone who was SUPPOSED TO BE a trusted teammate was natures way of trying to fix it, get me into the correct one."

"It is possible you were supposed to be found by the race and turned there and then, but the Forths actions that day interfered. The nine-tailed's presence-or traces of him left in you-somehow blocked them from sensing you. Your training with the Sannin in nature chakra was meant to be, to open you up to.....her, Mother Nature. It is why the version in YOUR world immediately became protective of you, took you as hers-just like she did Ivory and Razvan sama."

"So I was MEANT to be their child all along."

Shino moved his shoulders slightly, his version of a shrug "it is just a theory based on logic and your own words."

"Kinda makes sense" Kiba piped up with "I mean Hinata definitely doesn't belong in that clan. She's sweet, emotional, cares for everyone around her and wants nothing more than to be an healer and free the branch members, all things NOT Hyuuga."

"She has loved the Uzumaki since first sight" Shino went on, seeing the said young woman blush "it is possible SHE felt the connection first. He was always gentle and friendly with her, even defended her honor at the Chunnin Exams, but we saw nothing to suggest he felt the same."

The was a sudden image in their heads, a beautiful figure dancing on the surface of a lake under a waterfall and a flash of awe and love from it. It was only a second, but was there.

The blonde immediately put a hand to his head and Hinata blushed deeply, seriously "you SAW that?!" she squeaked out. He looked down at her "that was YOU?! It is real?!" Hinata's blush deepened before she suddenly frowned "that was a memory? You actually REMEMBERED something?!"

"I have seen that image for as long as I can remember" he answered "every time I tried to imagine what my lifemate would look like, it came to me. I thought...."

 ** _"You thought YOU had made it up, but in reality your mind and probably memories were simply answering you directly"_** his mother answered. _"It implies you knew who she was on some level and your mind was trying to lead you there using your repressed memories."_ This from his father _"have you ever received any other such images, people or places you do not know?"_

"No" he replied "just that one. But the emotions are usually different. Sometimes it's awe, sometimes it's overwhelming sadness, sometimes an love so strong I want to go to her and embrace her, sometimes confusion or concern for her safety."

Hinata frowned at him in confusion "way do you feel sad?"

"It's like the figure is an angel and I'm not worthy of touching her. I feel.....unworthy, like no matter what I try, she is beyond my grasp" he looked suddenly blank "her family would never allow us to be together, so I admire from afar."

He suddenly blinked and looked baffled "where did THAT come from?"

Hinata gaped at him. Could it be that when she wasn't watching him, HE was watching HER?! The very thought made her dizzy with both excitement and confusion as well as some sadness. He had thought he was some no-name orphan and so not worthy of her. That she was some pure and she would never accept him. How wrong they both were. If Naruto had of loved her....."why the constant attention to the bit.....Sakura?" she asked out loud.

Shino spoke "is it not standard behavior for the looser-or geek-to be attracted to the smart girl? Is that not normal for human behavior?" Hinata looked at him "are you saying...he was doing it because it was expected of him to look normal? What about all the following her around and trying to ask her for dates?"

"Uzumaki san had no role model growing up, no one to tell him how and how not to act. The only way he could receive attention-it seemed-was through negative behavior. The Uchiha was not interested in other than power and their team leader seemed to indulge this, so did their female teammate. No one on the team seemed to be interested in anything other then themselves and what they wanted."

"So you're saying he would only bug her for dates because it meant it was SOME SORT of attention? Any sort was what he craved?"

"Exactly. I have also come to suspect in later years it had to do with an sense of empathy he had. Children have such until life and experience either teach them to ignore it or repress it, but he had no one to teach him this. After examining my memories of the subject I came to believe he purposely antagonized her in order to help her."

"How do you mean?"

"Think back on all those memories of them, when was the one time more than any other that he would do so?"

The other two looked thoughtful for a few minutes before Kiba's eyes widened. When Shino nodded to him, Hinata just looked confused. So the bug-nin explained "what would happen just before he would ask her out?"

When she just looked all the more confused, Kiba 'threw her a bone' so to speak. "The Uchiha. What would she try with the Uchiha?"

It took a few seconds before it occurred to her and her eyes widened in sudden knowledge "she would try to get his attention or persuade him to do something with or about her and get rejected! That's it, isn't it! He would do all that to distract her from her hurt feelings, give her something to take her temper out on!"

The males nodded "he meant well but did it the wrong way. Eventually instead of seeing the Uchiha as the traitor he was and is, she began to lay ALL the blame on him. Every little problem or mistake, everything to get angry for was HIS fault. No matter if it has nothing to do with him, or he was on a mission at the time or even during his three years away from the village, it was HIS fault."

"So when he returned to the village after that time it was like rubbing her nose in it, he, the useless idiot willingly returns while the man she supposedly loves and THINKS loves her back still is gone and WON'T."

"I saw it from her teens. Even then she seemed....unstable. She seemed to settle though. However it seems not so, she just became good at hiding it."

“It doesn’t matter now” the blonde said “if you wish to return to the village before sunrise we need to go quickly.” The three were about to move but Naruto cocked his head and frowned. The three heard his father asking him something softly, but the blonde just shook his head and murmured “not now. It is not the time or place.”

Hinata frowned at him “what is it?”

“It is not important right now” he wouldn’t look at her. She frowned at his reaction “tell me.”

“Later jela lamti. What father asked is not something that can be discussed in a few words.”

As they packed up quickly and efficiently Shino asked her what she was asking about. “His dad asked why he hadn’t used ‘the binding words’ yet. Naruto-kun said it wasn’t the time to discuss, he had to wait until I’m ready.”

“Binding words?” Shino frowned.

“Later” the blonde called, helping them by clearing the area of their scent and presence on the earth.

It took them mere minutes to clear up, wait for the blonde to shape change and they were off.

*******************************************************************************************************************


	7. 7

They landed on the path to the gates of Hidden Leaf's main entrance. After readying themselves while the blonde took his form and donned his disguise they headed forward. After checking in with the gate guards, to be told that they were to report IMMEDIATELY to the Hokage, they entered the village.

About half way there they heard a loud giggle and the disguised blonde abruptly stopped. They were about to ask why when they saw he was looking down, a small smile on his lips.

Wrapped around his leg was a five year old little girl, looking up at him and giggling. She had black hair and pale skin with dark red eyes in a strange pattern.

Through her giggles the little girl spoke "Cistri."

The disguised blonde blinked at her, surprised "no, little one, ekä." The girl blinked back "ekä? avio päläfertiil?"

"No child" he loosened her from his leg and knelt before her, Hinata's hand in his "avio päläfertiil. Cistri." He took her little hand and placed it on his chest "ekä."

The girl blinked at him, disappointed "ekä" to which he nodded. A slow smile started and she urged him to pick her up as only a child could.

He did so, standing up straight while nursing her on his hip. That's when they recognized her, the daughter of their sensei and the Thirds son.

Where was her mother?

The disguised blonde caught the child's attention and locked eyes with her. "What are you doing?" Hinata asked, concerned.

"She was speaking to me in Carpathian, MY tongue. That could only mean one of two things."

"What?" Kiba asked but Shino frowned "it would have to mean she was being taught by someone. The only ones who know it are his people."

He nodded slightly, not loosing his eye-lock on her "either she has been in direct contact with a Carpathian, on numerous occasions, suggesting I am not the only one here, or somehow, some way her lifemate has connected their minds and has been in contact, either way, I MUST know."

"Why?"

"Because there is also an third possibly, and I dread it if it is true. The security of your village would be in danger then."

"Explain."

"A vampire could be here. He could be using her under the guise of an lifemate to gain information on your village and the women here." They gasped in horror at the idea, so allowed him to continue. He had barely began when a figure appeared and approached them alarmed "Mirai?" Hinata stepped forward to catch the sight of the woman "it's alright sensei, he won't hurt her."

The woman frowned at them "what is he doing to her?!"

"His kind have immense power and healing abilities, mostly of the mind. He's examining her to find out why she won't talk other than the other tongue."

"Tongue?" she looked baffled so Shino went on "yes. You know how each village uses a type of code different from other villages to protect their important sensitive documents or information? Well where he comes from they not only write it, but SPEAK it. And somehow Mirai can speak it as well. He's trying to find out why and why it is the only one she will speak."

Kurenai looked worried "but it's the only thing she'll speak."

"Exactly, why? And where did she learn something like this from when their village is so far away no one before him has ever left?"

"What do you mean?"

"His people and village are from a land so far away no one has ever reached there in any lifetime. Because of this they aren't like us. They don't have chakra like us, instead they developed a connection to nature and each other. Their leader-their Prince-is the embodiment of their power. A few weeks ago they discovered a gateway-like a shortcut-through a hole in nature that allows them to come here as easy as the shussin. However they have no idea how long it would last, so Dragonseeker-san here volunteered to be the emissary to come through and see if it was worth an alliance with us."

"And he can understand us?"

"He can by reading minds. Humans don't think in different wavelengths, his village co-exists with trusted humans like us so he just matches the thoughts to the word."

"Why would they want to come here?"

"An enemy poisoned their females, meaning their women mostly miscarry or even if they don't they loose their babies in their first year of life. Even then those surviving are mostly males. Their race are dying out, they need uncontaminated women to mate and help their race, but they have to be genetically compatible. Dragonseeker has already found that in Hinata-neesan." The young woman blushed.

"So he's here to seek permission to marry Hinata and see if he can get permission to have other women marry other males."

Shino nodded "Dragonseeker-san thinks THAT is why Mirai is talking in his tongue. That one of the males in HIS village has connected minds with her and he's been teaching her."

Hinata spoke out "she called him a lifemate which is what the males call their wives. No one else knows that term. That means either he called her that, or he's taught her about them."

Kunerai looked alarmed "so he's been telling her she's his wife since she was a baby!?"

"That's what he's trying to find out" Kiba said "he's examining her both to find out why it's all she speaks AND try and follow their mental link back to the source and find out who he is."

As he had finished speaking the disguised blonde suddenly seemed to recoil-as if hit-and blinked as he murmured "stubborn fool!" He then put the child down who ran to her mother with a happy "haha!"

Her eyes widened as she picked her daughter up "Mirai! You spoke to me!"

The child giggled "he told the silly man off! Told him I'm allowed to speak to momma if I want!"

Everyone looked at the disguised blonde who explained "I was right. The second one."

Shino remembered "he was communicating with her through their minds."

He nodded "it is an ancient and they can be stubborn and set in their ways. He has known about her since she was born. Since the gateway was closed he could only be a voice to her in her dreams when she slept, teaching her all about our people and our tongue" he looked at the woman "he was connected to her through their minds. Lifemates are more than just genetically compatible, we are born for each other, our souls are drawn to each other to complete each other. Our women are the other half of us as we are theirs. When the gateway opened he was able to communicate easier." He tugged on his hair as he went on "he resembles my appearance, which is why she thought I was him."

The three ninja knew he was talking about his disguise, not true looks.

The disguised blonde looked at the woman "we are essentially possessive beings and he did not like the idea of her associating with other males, so he made it so she could not speak straight to them. Unfortunately her mind decided that if she couldn't speak to her daddy, she wouldn't talk to anyone else."

"Then why is she speaking it now?"

"I.....spoke to him. I convinced him how much he was hurting her with his jealousy and possessiveness, how much he was frightening her. I laid it on pretty thick, I told him how because of him her father never got to hear her call him daddy before he died. That her childhood SHOULD be filled with conversations with mummy, talking to school friends and socializing, instead he made her a outcast who can't even say her name."

"What did he say?"

"He agreed to stick with just teaching her, he will never again interfere in her life, until the time comes for him to claim her as his lifemate."

"When will that be?"

"When she reaches maturity, her teens or maybe a little later."

Shino frowned "he's so sure the gateway will be still open then?"

"It doesn't matter, NOTHING will keep him from her." He looked at the woman "Our race is both gifted and cursed with long jeverty and he has been waiting centuries for her, as young as the day she was born. I know you are afraid for her, but your daughter could not be in safer hands. He will do ANYTHING and everything to make her happy and keep her safe, even if it costs him his life. Everyone or thing important to her will be the same to him, including you. He will love her unconditionally and without question or pause." He looked at Hinata as he took her hand.

"EVERY one of the males of my race who find their lifemate feel this from the moment they find her. She may not feel the same as fast as he does, but not one of the couples who have found each other have ended up unhappy or broken in the end."

Kunerai blinked at him "so there is no separation among your people."

He shook his head "there is no need, every couple who are lifemates is compatible in every way." He locked eyes with her and after a few long seconds both blinked and seemed to come out of it "do you understand now?"

She nodded "I do." she looked at Hinata, eyes soft "take care of her, the three are like my own children" and with a wave she turned, Mirai on her hip, and left them.

Once gone Hinata looked at him curiously "what did you show her?"

"Everything I feel for you" he answered "so she could see just how well her lifemate-when he comes for her-will treat her, how he will feel for her."

Shino frowned "how do you know he WILL feel the same? He already manipulated her enough to hurt her feelings." The blonde sighed "every male when finding their true lifemate will look at her as if he doesn't exist without her. He can not breathe without her, her life and happiness takes present over his own. However we STILL are basically an animal underneath so though we are human-like in behavior we still suffer the flaws of male behavior, only in an intense way because of our previous lack of emotions, including jealousy, anger so on. HE is an ancient, meaning his ways are more primal and his emotions after so long are more intense."

"So because he's so old he feels everything more intensely, including possessiveness and jealousy of other men around her."

He nodded "he reasoned to himself if they could not understand her, they would not be interested in her. He took it too far though, but that is the problem with her being so young, she can not understand his feelings or actions yet so can not tell him when to stop or not do something. To her, he is just an adult."

"So that was why he said he would not interfere in her life anymore past teaching her, he doesn't want to do anything else that will make her sad like being unable to talk to Asuma-san before he died."

The disguised blonde nodded as they resumed their journey to the tower "once he understood what he did wrong and why she did not stop him, he felt guilty. Carpathian's care deeply for children as well as our lifemates, the fact so many of us are adopting abandoned or neglected human children is proof of this. To be told he hurt her so much without even caring upset him. Mirai-san herself had to sooth him through our link." He glanced back the way mother and daughter had gone "so young and yet she KNEW, at least instinctively who he is and was acting to soothe his upset."

They had moved further along when they noticed him frowning at a figure going past. They frowned and followed his eyes, surprised who he was watching "what is it?"

"It seems I judged this world too harshly without truly trying to see it's worth."

"What do you mean?"

"I saw a world where children are turned into weapons and made the decision that this world was not the type our people would wish an alliance with. I was going to recommend to our Prince NOT to associate with the lives here. Yet now that I am here among your people I have found FOUR women whom have an connection to our males as lifemates."

"FOUR?"

He took Hinata's hand again, "my woman, the child, her mother and now HER."

"Wait, WHAT?! Kunerai-san is a lifemate?! Since WHEN?! And how do you KNOW for sure?"

He sighed "I may not be a born Dragonseeker, but my father's blood runs strong inside me. Our line has been known through the ages as seerers" he motioned at the green metallic eyes "my great grandmother had it, my great uncle has it and I seemed to have. It is a major part of why I was chosen to come here. Their.....gift is unique in me."

"So you have a type of kekkai genkai you inherited though their blood during the change. What does it do?"

"I can see woman who are lifemates. Not who they are destined for, just their potential. Their aura lights up to me."

"I see. So your Prince sent you here because he knew you be able to see if anyone here could mate your males."

"Exactly."

“How can Kunerai-san be a lifemate? She was already in love with Asuma-san.”

"It has happened before. Humans don't see anything out there and often settle for comfort rather than love. You can love someone and NOT BE in love, at least humans can."

They looked at him as they walked "you mean a female lifemate has been with another man?"

"Yes. Females have been known to do so, even though they would feel little pleasure in it. They may tell themselves they are 'in love' with the male, but they do not. One woman even conceived."

"And how did the male take this?"

"At first he was furious another male had touched his lifemate in such a way let alone she had gotten pregnant, but then when he saw her memories he understood."

"Why?"

"His lifemate, the male and his sister had grown up together, first they only had one parent each and those one parent would drink and abuse each other and then them, so they grew up together very close knit, relying on each other for love and protection. All three were gifted in their own way and that made them more close knit than you can imagine. In fact they ran away from those trying to help them because they would not take them together. Later on the streets together, the male was their protection and guide. When they each found work and got a house together, the lifemate and male married. She loved the male, but wasn't IN LOVE with him.

She got pregnant to him, but before she could tell him, he was was murdered, by that group I told you about."

They understood. As a team they knew what it was like to be through everything together and had they been any different, one of them might have ended up with Hinata. They loved her, but weren't in love with her. It was more of a sisterly thing.

"Corrine had a weak heart, too weak to carry and sustain a baby full term. While she had been prepared to die in childbirth and leave the baby to it's aunt to raise, now Dayan had found her there could be no other outcome. She would live and so would the child. They were forced to bring her over at the same time as the baby was released from the womb. Dayan's blood now runs in her veins, she is HIS daughter."

"Wait" Shino's eyes narrowed on him behind his glasses "you said Corrine and Dayan, does that mean..."

The disguised blonde nodded.

"Shino? Kiba frowned. The disguised blonde spoke one word, one NAME "Jennifer."

The other two understood. The girl as a child had been able to use the Shadow Clone Jutsu, implying she had something close to chakra, not whatever they used. Now it made sense why. BOTH her genetic parents were gifted humans, as well as being at least half Carpathian. She was unique.

It could be that the mix of all three gave her the abilities of manipulating chakra.

"What.....gifts did her genetic parents have?"

"Corrine could move things with just her mind. In our world humans have termed it telekinesis. The male knew things, like when something was going to happen-slight precognition. He knew just before his death it was going to happen."

"Why didn't they stop it then?"

"He did not know when, just soon and it's not that suspific."

"And that is why you showed her your feelings for Hinata-chan as well. So when he comes for her, she won't fear him."

"Yes."

"And you said Anko-san was ALSO a lifemate?"

"If that is her name, yes. There is an air about her, I KNOW or have encountered her lifemate, but something is wrong."

"What do you mean?"

"I see her aura, it's all twisted and contaminated. SOMETHING is living in her, her soul and body. At first I thought she was being controlled by a Vampire, but even though it is very similar, it is not so. It feels.....mortal, even....." he paused long enough for Shino to supply the word "snake."

"Yes" he answered as they resumed walking. He seemed to realize what they were saying "that... Sannin you mentioned, the one responsible for the seal being opened."

"Orochimaru, yes" Shino nodded.

"Tell me about it-and him."

So they did, everything from how the three Sannin formed, the way the snake-nin changed and his betrayal of the village and actions afterwards.

"So this....curse seal implants part of the others chakra-or soul in the host and can not only take control of them, but.....siphon the others energy."

They nodded.

"Her lifemate will NOT be pleased" he muttered before continuing "how is the connection broken?"

"Unknown" Shino said "so far all that's been able to be done is lock part of it away so they are not under his control."

"THEY?!" he looked at them sharply "another has this mark?" The three exchanged looks then Kiba spoke hesitantly "Five of his own 'soldiers' and another."

"Who?"

"The Uchiha" Shino answered.

The disguised blonde took a few minutes to answer "you are referring to the one the traitor thinks loves her. My....ex-teammate?"

The three nodded.

"You seemed reluctant to tell me, why?" He answered his own question "you thought if I knew I would seek him out, if only to examine the mark for myself."

"Yes."

"Because it would be something my...other self would do and has done in the past."

They nodded again.

He snorted "I have no interest in him. Unless he threatened me and mine he is of no importance    
whatsoever."

They would have spoken further on the subject, but they reached the tower, entering to find an dark haired man sitting behind a desk. He wore the standard uniform he had seen on other males, but what was interesting was the scar across his face and the short ponytail on his head.

For some reason he felt drawn to this man, whether it was the kind eyes and aura from him or the way he looked at the three ninja like a concerned parent, he didn't know.

He totally approved of him and his presence around his lifemate. Usually an male was totally possessive of his female, even AFTER they fully mated but mostly before he was able to bind her to his side.

However this mortal didn't set of ANY of his instincts or his dark side.

Interesting.

Watching the way the three mortals with him interacted with the male he soon realized why.

For some reason this human treated the three like a concerned parent-especially his lifemate. Even the dog moved around the desk to greet the man. The animal gave off the sense of 'pack' and 'friend', excited to see him while all three greeted him as 'sensei' or 'sama'.

The human gave off no sense of attraction or desire for his mate whatsoever, only friendship, fondness and the strange sense of affection that he could only liken to a parent and that made him realize WHY he wasn't feeling threatened.

His lifemate had had no true father figure in her life, nothing past the man who was trying to turn her into a weapon for their clan.

Yet this man here looked at his lifemate like a father-or a fond uncle-even despite the fact she was a very beautiful young woman. In HIS eyes that was all she would ever be to him, nothing else possible between them.

When the man smiled at them, scratching between the dog's ears almost absently, he scanned his mind, just a light touch of the surface to see how he thought and felt.

And was surprised.

This man was no killer. His soul was too pure to be one. His entire body and soul was shining with an inner light he had never seen in a male before. It both soothed and intreged him. He felt like someone who would nurture not destroy.

He lightly touched his lifemates mind, seeking his identity.

A teacher it turned out, one of THEIR teachers growing up. And while he saw memories of a strict man to some there, he seemed incapable of being cruel. Somehow he KNEW instinctively how to handle children, how best how to handle them, whether it was with a firm hand, or to gently coax them out-as with his lifemate.

This man was obviously gifted, but in a way none of his village knew or recognized.

He had been told his past self was at least slightly emphatic, and if his memories were right in what he saw, it was obvious why he was drawn to the man.

Picking up others emotions must be terrifying at times, agony others. However hanging around such a pure soul....It must have felt not only like a relief but comfort. No wonder his lifemates memories showed so many of the two together.

He decided he wouldn't mind this man-as well as her teammates-being around his lifemate, maybe even himself.

He watched the man smile gently as the three put in their reports. The set of brown eyes moved to look at him, suddenly guarded.

"It's alright sensei" the dog ninja assured him "he's with us. If it weren't for him we never would have made it back home. He saved our lives."

"He is seeking asylum in Hidden Leaf" Shino continued "His people's healing skills are extra-ordinary."

"And he's not a bad warrior as it is" Kiba grinned and Naruto had the feeling he was being teased.

The young man blinked at him, something in his eyes that made him at first concerned the human somehow saw through his disguise.

But then he smiled at him, and Naruto found himself smiling back, however small it was. It had seemed almost....instinct. The human male spoke to him "Arigatou, hakushi-san. I am Iruka Unimo, Chunnin of Hidden Leaf and teacher at the academy here for our young ninja. These young people may be no longer my students but I worry each and every time they are out there in the field. I am grateful you brought them back to us in one piece, just as their families...." (Hinata winces at the reminder) "....will as well. Welcome to the village of Kohona and if there is anything I can do to make your stay more enjoyable, just ask."

Even though his words could be seen as a formal greeting, the tone of voice held such warmth and truth that it could only be seen as sincere. He meant what he said.

This human, at least it seemed to him, was always sincere when it mattered. And while as a ninja he MUST have said many untruths in his life, he didn't seem to be the sort to lie in regular life.

He smiled back and bowed low to him as he spoke, a sign of respect "greetings Iruka Umino, I am...Naruto Dragonseeker, son of Ivory Mannilov and Razvan Dragonseeker, Child of Mother Earth and Carpathian hunter and healer. It is an honor to meet one who obviously cares so much for those he teachers. It is a sign of a truly good soul." The human seemed to blush under the praise.

Naruto had no idea why he used his true name when he introduced himself, it just didn't feel right to lie to this man. It felt like to lie to him would be an insult to the man's honor and as a Carpathian honor was woven into their being, honor was vital to them.

The man blinked at him "that is an unusual name to have. Naruto. How did you get it?"

He grinned "my parents apparently."

"Apparently?"

"The ones whom I call mother and father did not conceive or give birth to me. But they raised me, cared for me as their own and their blood runs in my veins. As far as I am concerned, they are every bit my true parents."

Something sparked in the human males eyes "release the disguise, please, Dragonseeker-san."

He cocked his head at him "what makes you think I am hiding my true appearance?"

"Your words. You called them mother and father, you said as far as you were concerned they were you birth parents. You are wearing some sort of disguise so you look like them."

"Very astute of you, Iruka-san. Just for that I will grant your request." Before the three ninja with them could protest, the disguise was gone.

The older man gasped loudly, trembling hand going to his mouth as he sat back in his chair abruptly "Naruto?! It IS you!" he suddenly looked concerned and confused "but I don't understand. Where have you been?! Why didn't you return if you were alive?! Why now? I....."

Shino spoke quickly "he was betrayed by the Haruno and severely injured. It took him three months too just heal and then he came to the attention of another race. When he almost died protecting a group of their children they had to change his entire physiology into their race to save him. However the trauma of being changed completely to another species meant he lost ALL his memories beforehand. He could not return if  he did not remember us."

"Truly?" the man looked at him for confirmation. When he nodded he frowned "then how and why are you back here now? And how exactly are you another species? What about the....."

Shino interrupted "we will explain later, Iruka-sensei. Right now we must see the Hokage first, she summoned us."

The young man shut his mouth and drew himself up straight "of course, go" his eyes narrowed on the bug user, face and voice firm "but YOU WILL come and see me afterwards, you WILL explain everything."

"As much as we know and have theorized, yes sensei."

"Good, now go" he waved them off after looking at Naruto evenly and saying "remember my greeting, I mean it. Also if you want to learn about your other self, I'll be glad to help."

"I will keep that in mind" he said naturally as he reenvoked the disguise and followed the three away.

They soon reached a chamber obviously meant to be a waiting room, a pair of double ornate doors across from them. A woman stood waiting there, brown hair and a short kimono, a beautiful but sad smile for them, clutching a pile of folders and a strange small pig at her feet.

The woman GLOWED, just like the others, to him. Another compatible female.

The pig took one look at him, squealed and ran to hide-quaking-behind the woman who frowned in concern "Tonton, what is it? What is wrong?"

The pig peeked out at him, still shaking.

"I apologize" Naruto said "she senses the dark side of nature I contain. It is essentially an prey animal reacting to a predator. I did not know I would scare her. May I approach?"

The woman frowned "if she is scared, maybe you shouldn't."

"That is YOUR decision and right, but I believe once I do I can relax her by letting her sense and smell me up close."

The woman frowned "why would that be different?"

"I was unprepared for her presence so scared her without meaning to. Once close enough she will smell me properly and our connection to nature."

The woman opened her mouth again, but Kiba spoke "the same thing happened with Akamaru, Shizune-san, but look at him now" he motioned to where the white huge dog had firmly planted himself between his master AND the Carpathian, occasionally bumping against the disguised other.

The woman hesitantly turned to pick up the pig who squealed in panic. Naruto reached out with his mind-to find despite the fact it was a pig which tended to be a simple animal and mind, this one was surprisingly intelligent. He touched the mind, speaking gently now _"peace little sister. I mean you no harm or those here. I was merely showing my animal in order to ensure no one threatened my mate in an place unknown to me. I am sorry I scared you. I know you can also sense my brothers and sisters with me, but they also will not harm you. I am their alpha, they WILL NOT DARE to disobey."_

The pig calmed and looked at him closely.

Slowly he walked forward, standing enough of a distance away that the animal felt safe before slowly reaching out his hand. He stood perfectly still, hand out, waiting.

The pig cautiously leaned forwards in her arms, nose snuffling his fingers thoroughly. After a couple of seconds she seemed excited, making little happy squeals and squirming to be put down.

Frowning the woman did so, watching in confusion as the pig ran towards the male, running circles around him, almost dancing as she did.

Naruto watched her, amused, but standing still in order not to frighten her again. _"So, you remember me?"_

The pig nuzzled his pant leg and sat down, looking up at him, head cocked as if asking a question.

 _"I have no memories of you"_ he answered it _"All my early memories are gone except for my lifemates presence. All I remember is my people and....blood parents."_

The pig made a low sad sound, hanging it's head for a second before nuzzling his pants again and turning to walk back to the woman.

She picked it up, confused "Tonton?" the pig just nosed her faced comfortingly and looked back at him, as if saying 'I just wish you knew'.

There was a rather.....impatient call from behind the ornate doors and Naruto's eyes narrowed at it. How dare she be mad at his lifemate for being late! After all the three did just to survive their so-called mission and return in the first place. They almost died! He had the urge to retaliate, but NOT like his kind would. Instead he felt the urge to....prank her?

This startled him out of his reaction, causing him to blink a few times and examine the last few seconds in his head. Carpathian males were their mates dark sides, the negative to their positive, the beast-or demon-to their angel. Simply pranking someone was NOT a Carpathian action.

Then where?....

Before he could think more on it his woman was talking to him gently "stay here please, we need to explain first." He briefly read her mind then nodded his consent. The three had to report the events of the mission first before an 'outsider' was allowed into their meeting. He may be both, but since he had no memory and had spent so long a member of another village-no matter where that village came from or was located-his loyalties were questionable.

Especially since now being loyal to and answering to only his honor, his people and the Prince made him an outsider.

As the door closed behind them the woman turned to him "they may be a while, Dragonseeker -san, would you like something to drink? Tea perhaps?"

He considered it. As a Carpathian he COULD drink human beverages, however he would soon need to get rid of it out of his body or it would make him sick. He could also pretend to drink it, instead using his mind to make it APPEAR as though that was what he was doing.

Or he could just politely decline.

"No thank you" he said "I am fine right now."

The woman blinked at him as she sat down at her desk "just tell me if you want something."

He nodded.


	8. 8

While she got back to work with the files she held he sat waiting, monitoring the conversation through his lifemate. They had been ambushed, attacked, someone had known what they were doing and when and tipped off the enemy.

Now they knew who, but why? Why get them killed or captured? What could it possibly mean for the insane young woman? What would she gain and in what way did they cross her or even have anything to do with the traitor?

The three explained the events up until they were forced to run, the drained young woman riding the dog. He blinked in surprise when she explained the feel of him in her head, how he touched her mind-there was a burst of emotion and colors in front of her eyes she THOUGHT was the aftereffect of the jutsu used on her by the enemy, and then he was suddenly gone.

They described arriving at the area near the portal, only to be overpowered and knocked unconscious. Then Kiba translated his companions  barks and so on to explain the next events.

They explained waking up, what they learned and theorized and what happened during their time in the safe-house, only leaving out his 'true' identity and how long he was gone.

Next was the events of their journey home, their meeting the three come to locate them and the discovery of the Haruno's betrayal and attack on her ex-teammate.

When they were done there was a long silence as the woman tried to 'digest' all the information. Finally she spoke "so he was once one of OUR missing nins, adopted by two of another clan after he almost died and lost his memories? What makes you think this isn't some sort of set-up to get inside the village?"

"We trust him, Lady Hokage" Shino said "not only has he proven himself to us, but we all knew the previous version of him before he went missing and we have seen NOTHING so far to show he has in any way become something we can't believe in, despite his memory being missing."

"Us as in you three, or us as in you and your bugs?"

"Both" he said without hesitation "my kiki sense his connection to nature and know as a fellow creature he is worthy of their.....belief?" he didn't seem to know the right term to use. He continued with "there may be some forms of trickery in the kingdom of nature, but only HUMANS lie."

"And since he is a part of nature he wouldn't lie?"

"We found if it comes to that he just will not speak or he tries to change the subject, but he WILL NOT lie."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because he's a man of honor" the bug-nin said simply.

There was a long pause before she went to speak again, but he beat her too it "Lady Hokage when I said we knew him previously, I didn't just mean team eight, I meant you-the entire village. In fact he was important to you once."

"What do you mean?"

"Allow him to join us, you will see and I think you will understand fully then."

There was a female sigh and she called out "Shizune." The woman behind the desk reacted "you can go in now, Dragonseeker-san."

"Thank you" he bowed politely to her and approached the doors, not hesitating before striding inside and closing the doors after him.

The three human and one dog team stood before a large wooden carved desk, both sides piled with scrolls and paper work. The center held and single scroll the woman on the other side was examining.

She looked at least thirty or forty, but his lifemates three companions had told him she was in her late fifties. Somehow she was able the keep herself appearing younger. She had short blonde hair, paler than his natural, amber eyes and he blinked, she resembled his mother except for the hair and eye color. Her bust was... generous in the least and he could tell-even if she was seated-she was strong and fit. This was a woman used to beating men up, not doing feminine things.

Well she would find him no victim. He was stronger than she could imagine and WOULD NOT allow someone-other than his lifemate of course-to lay their hands on him. Even Vampires learned that lesson the hard way.

HE was a natural alpha and he would act like it.

From behind him where his brothers and sisters had his back he felt movement and a low vibration of movement as one growled, disturbed by his emotions. Silently he spoke to them, calming them. He then noticed the nin-kin looking at him sharply, so he spoke to him as well _"calm, my friend. One of my brothers was worried about my reaction to an dominate female and decided to express himself. I have calmed him and regained control."_

The animal snorted something, causing him to grin. His companion heard it though and frowned at him "what does THAT mean?"

The other two looked at him "what did he say?"

"He snorted 'puppies' as if it was something stupid."

 _"Foolish more like"_ he told them mentally _"he was reacting to the.....displeasure my brothers and sisters showed at being faced by a dominant female."_

Hinata blinked and seemed offended for some reason-and hurt _"a female can't be in charge?"_

 _"It is not that, lifemate. You forget, they are wolves and think like them despite being also Carpathians, and in the wolf and canine animal kingdom, MALES are the providers, males hunt, males protect, making THEM the alpha. Ask your companion."_   He DIDN'T mention how it was the same for Carpathians, however it was more that the males were more capable of doing what was needed to be done, their women were too pure and since they were almost wiped out, the males couldn't afford to loose their females.

The female frowned _"But Kiba's clan is lead by his mother. She leads AND is their protector."_

Kiba himself snorted _"that's because she's the strongest of our clan, she won the right by fight. When she first went into heat, my father was the only one strong enough to top her. He died on a mission before I was born. When we go into heat we become....."_   he paused, looking for the right term _"the only way to describe it is rabid animals-especially the females-so we get locked away during. The FIRST one is so bad you don't wanna know, we are wild animals driven to mate, no matter what. Only an dominate can control us. On mom's first heat she was on a mission...."_ he mentally shook his head and didn't go on.

 _"So if you beat your mom, you become clan head?"_ Hinata asked. They sensed a mental nod _"mom knows that her leading is unsettling to the males of our clan, so she's been trying to kinda 'groom' me to take over. It's hard, has been since I was a child."_

_"Some males are born dominate, some become so, others are forced by circumstances. You are a strong human and loyal friend, you would make a good leader."_

Kiba blushed.

 _"Just remember, your people's safety and well-being is important and should always be top priority. LISTEN to them and take what they say seriously, DO NOT just cast anything they say off. This breeds contention and jealousy. But if your clan sees you take them and their rights and opinion seriously, they will become totally loyal."_  
Kiba nodded, looking like he was taking everything he said seriously and to heart.

_"But also there will be trouble-makers, those who feel that they know better or just like to 'push your buttons' so-to-speak. These will require special care, or attention. These you will have to learn to tell them apart. Some will defy you simply because they can, others want to test you as a leader, others will want your position for themselves, craving what they see as nothing but power over others-without the responsibility. You will know what to do when that happens. If not, I will aid you."_

_"I understand and arigatou, but I need to figure it out for myself"_ Naruto gave him a slight grin _"spoken like a true leader."_

_"How do you know all this?"_

_"It is what I would do plus the example off our own leader. Mikhail is an compassionate man who cares about each and every one of his people like his own brothers and sisters. It saddens him how our men are turning evil with no hope left and children are dying. However he IS an alpha of our race, so he has the capability, like all of us, to be ruthless."_

_"And you said he has a daughter now...."_

_"Raven, his lifemate, was the first human successfully to make the transition to Carpathian. She conceived a daughter to him who is the lifemate of Gregori, our healer. Their next try ended in loosing the baby before it was born, however thanks to my mother the healer and his lifemate successfully gave birth to twin girls."_

Any further conversion was cut off as the blonde woman before them spoke, looking up from the scroll as she spoke "so, you're the Kohona ninja who lost his memory and was raised by another village."

"Apparently" he grinned sardonically. She frowned "apparently? Either you are or not."

"He doesn't remember, Lady Hokage" Shino said, "but he IS whom we think he is."

"How can you be so sure? I don't even recognize him" she suddenly frowned at him "remove the jutsu."

"How do you know I'm wearing a disguise?" he found himself grinning sardonically.

"Oh please. Team eight knows you and trusts you, believes in your....honor. They said I knew you as well as the villagers, so you created a disguise that would allow you to move freely through the village here without problem. Remove it."

So he did.

Silence filled the room as everyone (except team eight) froze at the sight before them. He felt the ripple go through those hidden around the room-obviously there to protect the woman, which he approved of-and one murmured something, then again. This was soon echoed by the others, disbelief followed by rapid hand movements between each other. Slowly and from between gritted teeth the woman spoke again "I said remove it, not change it."

"That IS his real looks, Lady Hokage...." Ignoring her own subordinate the woman screamed "I SAID GET RID OF IT!" There was something in her voice that stopped his first reaction. So he pushed his mind into hers. Grief, anguish, fury, pain, hurt, yearning. Her heart was broken once again on top of old hurt, she WOULDN'T be hurt again.

She LOVED his past self, as if she was his mother-or at least a fond aunt.

His wolves felt it through him, felt their.... connection and whined in sympathy.

"You think he....I am dead, do you not. It is why you refuse to believe. Tell us why, this is recent." The woman waved at the scroll in front of her "I have here the report of one of my men at T&I. He was able to fully examine the Haruno's mind to find out the truth."

"And what was the results?" Shino asked.

The woman winced "everything your retrieval team said was true. It seemed this.....madness had been part of her since her birth but when she was young her mother and father taught her how NOT to act. They wanted their daughter in the academy so they could boast about being a civilian family with a ninja daughter. As she grew she learned how to behave from watching other people. Her almost constant abuse of MY gaki was part of herself showing through, mixed with such an act. She actually hated him, loathed" there was tears in her eyes "her obsession with Sasuke started in the academy, but she built these delusions for herself about them being in love since they were small children. Her little memories of them meeting up to be together don't mesh with documented files of the Uchiha's true locations during those days. Also when certain people were in her memories of these times, when interviewed had no idea what we were talking about or memory of such an event themselves.

Her entire mind is filled with memories she's created in her delusion of the perfect romance between her and the Uchiha and her hate of my gaki for supposedly coming between them. She believes he left, not for power, but because he drove him away! She thinks he's been sneaking in to see her! There was not a SINGLE trace of him in her family home!

And worse still, her betraying my gaki like that! AND covering it up! For years she's been faking sorrow and concern, sometimes along side us, she watched us all and never revealed herself in any way!" The woman had to visibly control herself, but the grief and sorrow poured off her. Naruto's brothers and sisters along with the canine companion all whined in sorrow with her feelings.

Immediately the others in the room tensed, hearing the whine of FIVE animals, not one.

The blonde woman’s face sharpened and she looked at him “where did those growls come from?! And don’t tell me that was just you!”

“I apologize. My brothers and sisters felt your sorrow and were expressing their sympathy. They are only young, younger than me and barely pups so they feel things rather strongly. They are also connected to me so they feel what I feel.”

“Brothers and sisters? Those were growls! Where are they? Bring them out at once!” Shino spoke “we told you he had wolves with him, Hokage. We apologize, we assumed he left them in the forests around Kohona. We had no idea they were here.”

“You never asked or I would have told you. They are always with me and forever watch my back.”

The room was suddenly oppressive with KI but the figure didn’t flinch in the slightest, just said “if your men want to live right now, tell them to stop that. Do not any of them know what happens when they try to dominate a wolf? They are animals and instinct is to protect theirs.” He looked over his shoulder and said firmly “stand down Tensei” through the growing snarling from behind. When the wolf obviously ignored him, he sent out such a powerful wave of what could only be described as alpha dominance that the KI disappeared and every person in the room, including the blonde woman, was immediately finding themselves submitting.

When the growls faded to a whine again before silence the woman spoke “how did you do that?!”

He seemed amused “I am an alpha male Carpathian, despite my age. I have fought the most vilest of beings and protected humans long before my status of Child of nature. It comes naturally” his eyes locked to Hinata and she blushed deeply and looked down at the heat there in his eyes. _“Do not do that”_ his warm voice chided her _“do not lower your eyes from me like you are not equal. We are two halves of the same whole, you are my equal, more than that, you are, at least in MY eyes, so much more than me.”_

Her eyes immediately snapped up to his _“no you’re not! You’re my equal! I don’t care about some rule or alpha or whatever but you are not below me in ANY way!”_ He seemed amused _“To a Carpathian their lifemate is the most important thing in their life, more important then their own lives, then others around them. You do not yet understand and you will not until.....”_

_“Until what? I become one of you?”_

_“No, until we bond.”_ She was about to speak when the blonde woman had “where are these animals? Bring them out, NOW!”

“As you wish” he grinned sardonically. As they watched he started to remove his shirt “You may want to move back for this” he warned. The woman started to speak but Hinata suddenly gasped, her hand to her mouth “it’s.....it’s beautiful.” Shino’s eyes widened behind his glasses just very slightly and Kiba yelped “what the...!”

On his back was a tattoo, an forest scene with four silver furred wolves. Three were laying down relaxing, watching the forth wolf who stood up, head thrown back as if in the midst of an howl at the moon overhead. The animals were incredibly life-like, incredibly detailed, they could ACTUALLY see each individual hair and the eyes were so blue as they seemed to stare at them from the back, assessing them.

They were so life-like, a work of pure art, an inked painting on flesh, but not real, they thought.

That was until they MOVED!

Two of the wolves heads turned to look directly at them! And the one with the raised head lowered it to look at them critically. It seemed it didn’t approve of them. As they watched the four animals jumped right out of (or was that right off?) his back, one staying at his side while the other three headed straight for Hinata. Before anyone else could move she had dropped to one knee in front of them, hands sliding into the thick fur and gasping in awe. One bent it’s head back to lick her face while the other two rubbed against her, begging for attention. She giggled and stroked them, much to the first one’s displeasure of the loss of contact. So it settled for just leaning against her, eying Akamaru as if he was a tip bit to eat.

“Tensei” he warned again, voice a low growl of power.

The wolf blinked and made a production on rubbing against the white eyed young woman, as if trying to stir the dog by scent-marking the female. Causing Akamaru to snort the same as before again. ‘Puppies.’

 _“Brothers and sisters this is Hinata Hyuuga my lifemate and so pack. She is to be your sister and fellow alpha and you will answer to her as you do to me. Any disobedience WILL NOT be tolerated.”_ The two females and other male all whined in submission, the two around her begging for more attention-which she gave-but the last male snorted. He narrowed his eyes _“Tensei I warn you, you are NOT alpha here and you will obey or there will be consequences.”_

Next to his leg the more timid female whined in fear.

Kiba gulped “um, guys, back up a bit.”

Everyone else looked at him, even Hinata “why?”

“Just trust me, you don’t want to be near them with what’s about to happen.”

The group moved away, two of the wolves following Hinata, even the hidden ANBU, the timid female joining Hinata at Naruto’s nudge. Hinata sensed a kindred spirit in the female and knelt to put her arms around her neck in comfort. For some reason the name Ijirashii came to her for this one. Whether it was her name or what she saw it as one she didn’t know.

Her brother nudged her playfully and the other female just lay down and placed her head on her paws. Hinata blinked as the names Jareru and Heion came again, Jareru for the male and Heion for the female. She looked at where the blonde was staring down the other male Tensei DEFINITELY wasn’t the right name for him.

She looked back as little Ijirashii sat down, putting her head in Hinata’s lap while the other two sensed the rising power and paused, ears up and at attention, watching the two like them. The head in Hinata’s lap trembled and she found herself immediately stroking the fur there comfortingly. It seemed as though the female was overly sensitive to emotions, something she got from Naruto’s sense of empathy when he was human? This must be terrible for her.

The power grew stronger, clouding their eyes and sight from the two and Hinata blinked when she, like everyone else, could sense something definitely familiar mixed in. She looked over at the blonde leader, seeing she had seen it as well, her eyes wide and mouth opening and closing, tears in her eyes.

If anyone recognized the chakra of the nine-tailed fox, the female Hokage did.

But it was different, mixed in with the unique power of an dominant male of another species but at the same time it was DEFINITELY it, no mistaking it.

It seems their theories on the fox was right on one point. If the blonde had of assimilated the creature, that power would have been a part of him. If it was dead, his power would had received a boost until his body had fully processed it, becoming his own. However the power and presence was still there-almost like it was before, only now it was interwoven with the blondes, like the soul was there-or rather the will-but their abilities, strength and powers were woven together, like an rope, each part could exist separately, but wound tightly together they were stronger, better.

Was it even aware, or had Naruto's will override it? He had told them he had no chakra, but while that may be partly true, the fox had been pure chakra itself and they could FEEL it. Was the fox his 'beast' as he called it? He had said that every Carpathian had one inside him, tamed and controlled by their lifemate, so maybe the fox still existed, only now it's will was overrode it took it's place. It may be that, as the wolves were Carpathian and wolf, the fox too was Carpathian, who saw Hinata as it's mate also. It was like those silver furred canines, only unlike them it had no form or body to separate, so it was stuck as it was, the young man's animal side.

Perhaps the fox's will and soul had been sacrificed along with the blondes memories during his change.

The three humans looked to the Hokage, wanting to see her reaction to what was happening. To find her there with eyes wide and teary, so many mixed emotions in them, among them was joy and hope.

They had no doubt she now believed in who they said he was.

Add to that the hidden ANBU scattered about the room were signing to each other, Shino's bugs could sense their shock, relief and awe. Now the Hokage's most precious person was alive and had returned-whatever state that was in-their leader would be much easier to handle. Not to mention the woman they had come to care about, watching her fear for and fall apart about the last ten or so years returned in whatever state he was.

Of course without memories of his past the two would have to rebuild their relationship from scratch, but that just gave the female the chance to be what she wanted all along. Without memories the once knuckle-headed prankster but now true warrior could become something special, like his father once was.

When he was young he used to tell everyone who listened how he was going to become Hokage one day, THIS young man looked totally capable and worthy to them.

A few vaguely wondered if the silver headed scarecrow, his ex-sensei, had seen him yet, he reminded them of an more stern version of the Forth.

It seemed he had grown from being a kid, his personality like his mothers, to his fathers.  
Some of the ANBU would gladly have followed him, knowing just by his aura and what they had seen here was a man who would care about each and every one of them.

For even though he was dominating the rebellious pup, there was no cruelty or maliciousness to it. He was doing what was necessary, nothing more, nothing less.

Finally they heard an wolf growl and snap, another whine like a submissive and then the power was easing off.

The three others around Hinata stood and walked over into the light after an affectionate nuzzle of her leg and lick of her face.

By the time it had fully faded there was only the blonde there, shirt replaced and looking as calm and controlled as before.

Disappointed Hinata realized they had gone back onto his back. She liked them and wanted to spend more time with them, she had the overwhelming urge to curl up against Heion and sleep there, knowing the others would surround her in a 'puppy pile'.

At the moment she wanted nothing more.  
He smiled at her as if sensing her thoughts.

 _"What are their names?"_ she thought to him. His smile remained _"You already know."_ She blinked at him _"really? That was their names?"_

He nodded slightly before turning to the other blonde and bowing to her "I apologize for the behavior of my little brother. Unfortunately wolf combined with Carpathian male combined with what you would call puberty is not always a good thing. When my mother's wolves went through this she was nowhere near human civilization, so she did not have to worry about something like this going on. All this is just bad timing."

"What exactly WAS that?!"

"Carpathian males are alpha-very territorial and possessive creatures, our souls are akin to wolves themselves. We can be savage and violent as well as dark creatures to those outside our loved ones, but we also are loving, protective and gentle to those we care about or even love. Put all those inside an wolf.....Well Tensei thought he could dominate me. He did something he should not have, so I showed him his place."

"What did he do? I didn't see anything."

Kiba spoke out "he was marking Hinata as his, that's challenging his dominance."

"He was?" Hinata frowned, echoed by the blonde woman. Kiba nodded "by rubbing against you. Short of pissing on you that was him marking you."

"But the other three did that as well!"

"If you had of watched their behavior, the other three were viaing for your attention, 'Nata. However the other was not only rubbing against you FORCEFULLY, he was watching Dragonseeker san WHILE he was doing it. Essentially he was daring him to react."

"And because he says Hinata is his mate, he had to answer that challenge immediately" the blonde Hokage supplied to which the dog-orientated ninja nodded "if he had of let it go to answer to a later date, it would loose all importance or impact, he's already let a direct challenge to his authority go, that's not how things work in the canine kingdom. ALL challenges are immediately answered."

The rest of the room understood.

The blonde Hokage looked at the other blonde "do you still have the seal?"

In answer the figure lifted the bottom of the shirt (making Hinata blush deeply at the sight of those washboard abs and stomach) and reveal an appearing mark there. "Snake" Tsunade called and a female ANBU in the room suddenly appeared from her hiding spot to approach.

The male Carpathian allowed her to approach him only so far and examine it closely before she stood back up and turned to their leader "it's identical, Hokage-sama. Although I don't feel the nine tailed inside anymore, the combination of the Forth's chakra and forbidden seal is and was unique only to HIM. NO ONE could replicate it so completely, they would need the Forths chakra for a start."

"And with Minato-san dead, that is impossible" she nodded, looking back at the blonde Carpathian "then it's official, memories or not, you ARE Naruto Uzumaki\Namikaze." At his look she quickly amended it to "Uzumaki\Namikaze\Dragonseeker."

"Hokage I suggest an amalgamation of the three" Snake said.

"What do you suggest?" the other woman asked.

"How about Dun, Dragonseeker, Uzumaki and Namikaze" she looked at the blonde male who nodded his approval, as long as his adopted father's name was first.

"That's acceptable, except for now, in dealing with the issue of the council and your inheritance, you are Uzumaki\Namikaze" she looked at the other when she said this. Then she went on "the trouble lies in the councils. We CAN NOT have you under the jurisdiction of the civilian council" she shuddered visibly "they are responsible for your past self's traumatic childhood in the first place."

Shino spoke out "the Civilian Council runs the civilian side of Kohona while the Shinobi Council runs ninja and military forces inside like ANBU and the Police."

The blonde woman nodded "even though both your parents were shinobi, until your past self actually became an ninja, you were under THEIR jurisdiction. There was really nothing the Third could do for you until then except assign you an ANBU tail to ensure your protection. It was why they resorted to alienating you and the whispers."

"If the Civilian Council was to claim authority over Naruto....." Hinata's eyes widened in horror. But the blonde just snorted "they would have no more authority over me then what I allow them."

"Explain" the first female Hokage said immediately.

"Human minds are so simple" a voice said in ALL their heads "I can bend them easily to my will, or plant suggestions that they think THEY THEMSELVES came up with. If they try to manipulate me, I will merely make it so they think otherwise."

"Is there any way to get him considered a ninja again, Hokage?" Snake asked "not that the Ninja Council is any better but at least YOU have authority over them."

She looked thoughtful "I never had Naruto declared dead, Kakashi refused to let me put his name on the Hero stone. He always was convinced you were alive and we just had to find you. As did Jiraiya. Both have spent nearly every waking moment searching for you, for clues on what happened. However even if I didn't declare you dead, I had to class you as a missing nin. However that doesn't mean I can just reinstate you for nothing. I can..."

Shino spoke "but if he does a mission successfully for the village, his stasis will be reinstated. If you send him on a mission for the village and he is successful BEFORE meeting with the council, this will reinstate him as ninja for the village and therefore under the Shinobi Council's-and your- authority, not civilian."

"You're right" the woman nodded "only what mission? We need something he can do immediately and fast. Once the Council learns of this, they'll be screaming for us to bring him to them. Plus there's the problem of Hinata, once her father learns she has returned, he'll want her home so the marriage can take place immediately."

Hinata winced visibly at the reminder of her 'obligation' while the blonde male was immediately at her side, comforting her in his arms, blue eyes cold as he said in a voice identical to his eyes "that will NOT happen, my jela lamti, I will not allow it." His head turned towards the other blonde "you are concerned about one of your ninja,  I could sense it the moment I entered this building."

She nodded "he is my only remaining link between you and your father" she sighed at his look "GENETIC father then. He was on a mission, a simple scout one, but he's disappeared. The men I sent out say he was tracked to nearby enemy territory, but they lost track of him there, no trace after that of who he fought or where he is now. I KNOW he would have left us some clue if he was captured......"

"But there was nothing" he supplied and she nodded "I can't claim he's an captive or send people in to rescue him because...."

"They will claim they don't have him and you have no proof past theories. If you go in, they can claim you were trying to spy on them-at worst assassinate their leader."

She nodded again, lips pursed in mixed emotions.

"What if I can guarantee his return-in ANY condition? If the enemy has him-his rescue unknown to your enemy-or his body."

"Even if you can just find out what happened, I'd be grateful. "

"If you can class it as a mission, Hokage-sama...."

"SHIZUNE!!!!" the woman called.

Almost immediately the other younger woman entered "Yes, Lady Tsunade?"

"Put in a mission scroll with the mission desk ASAP. Investigation and retrieval of an missing Jounin of Hidden Leaf. Special order mission assigned to an returning ninja previously MIA without a trace, Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze, now Naruto Dun, or Dragonseeker Uzumaki Namikaze."

The woman froze in shock, head turned to spot him, stuttering "Nar....Naruto?" He nodded and The pig suddenly tore into the room around her, heading for the blonde.

He allowed it to nuzzle his pant leg before picking it up, holding it in his arms briefly before putting it back down again.

The younger woman gaped at him "YOU were Dragonseeker san?! But I don't understand."

"He doesn't remember, Shizune-sama" Hinata said  to her "he lost his memory and was raised by another clan."

The woman blinked at him "is this true?"

When he nodded she looked sad "I'm sorry" she looked at the pig "that's why Tonton reacted like this, she remembers you, but you don't her."

He nodded again.

"Shizune, we need that scroll ASAP" the blonde woman said "Naruto says he can find HIM and bring him back to us without the enemies knowledge. IF he is successful, we can reinstate him as ninja."

The other woman's eyes cleared, knowledge in them "I see. Immediately Lady Hokage." And with the pig in tow she rushed from the room.

The blonde woman turned back to them "now, tell me everything again, THIS TIME leave nothing out."

So they did, even about Naruto claiming Hinata as his 'lifemate' and what he told them that meant. Even their theory about the two meaning to be born in their world together, not here.

It took at least another hour, explaining theories, what they learned from the blonde's adopted parents and the blonde himself.

"So, these beings-another race besides humans-were forced to change him into like them to save his life after he saved their children. However the trauma of such a change plus the nine-tailed fighting to get free was so severe, he lost ALL memory from before that moment. The two who adopted him were forced to rebuild his mind as one of them since they had no idea of who Naruto was previously."

They nodded.

"And why would they go to all that trouble when they don't know who or what he is?"

"The race is dying, Hokage. An enemy found a way to contaminate them in a way they couldn't detect and now they rarely give birth. It seems only mostly male children are surviving their first year of life, extremely rare are females born and survive. In the last 50 years or so only four females have survived and that's because they had help from humans."

"Humm" the woman sat back in her chair thoughtfully "if they can....change others, you'd think they would choose humans to increase their ranks."

"They can't, Hokage. Only certain people, certain types are compatible. They tried others but they either die or go completely insane and have to be 'put down'. Normal humans can't handle the change or power. And if what we've discovered in the village on the way in is right, only female ninja."

"So only those with chakra" she confirmed and he nodded "his kind call it 'gifted'. In the last ten or twenty years in his world they have been finding multiple women like this, compatible with various males of his race. Hinata, it turns out, is compatible with HIM. These women they call lifemates. Their Prince was the one to discover this when he found his."

"Humm" the woman looked thoughtful. The Aburame was going on "Hokage that is not all."

"What?!" she looked at him.

"It seems his adopted father's line all have an dojutu, which he....inherited." She blinked "and that is?....."

"He can SEE those women compatible with his race. On our walk through the village he saw three females alone. In the tower he saw one."

"Two" he corrected.

They looked at him "another?! Who?"

Blue eyes locked on the woman in front of them. Shino's eyes widened behind his sunglasses "The Hokage?!" He nodded "the moment I entered the room she lite up like a spotlight to me. Also I am now sensing two others" he looked at the snake-masked ANBU, then to another location.

The two women blinked, one hidden, one not.  
They could marry into another race? They could safely become one?

The blonde sat forward, eyes narrowed on him "and why should we allow ourselves into this sort of.....relationship?"

"To us, our females are the most important thing in our lives. Nothing else is more beautiful, sexy, precious and treasured then them. We love them and are in love with them the moment we bond. We see them for who they are inside, their soul and heart, as they are the other half of our soul. We will NEVER see anyone else anywhere as close to as we see them. An Carpathian male will never desire another woman, sexually or otherwise, we are incapable of it. We mate FOR LIFE and only desire for our lifemate's happiness, safety and protection above all else-it is our top priority-and the safety of our Prince and preservation of our people. We will dedicate our existence to keeping her happy and safe, and NEVER betray her."

The two other women pondered this. An husband who would never desire another, will do whatever was needed to keep her happy and safe. Will love her from the moment they meet, will spend his life dedicated to HER.

It sounded too good to be true, this was every woman's fantasy man.

"What's the catch" Snake ANBU asked.

"Catch?" he asked her, seemed confused at this.

"Yeah, there HAS to be something the woman gives up for all this."

Shino spoke out "Naruto told Hinata he doesn't want her being a ninja anymore, so there's that." Hinata spoke next "we would have difficulty having a child, and might loose them because of the trouble with their race reproducing."

"And they live a long time" Kiba piped up with "so you'd live longer than those you love-like family."

The two ANBU women didn't care about this last one, they had no family left, but the one where they had to leave their jobs.....

"What do you mean they live a long time" The blonde woman leaned forward, interested "what exactly is a long time?"

"We age slower than humans. Once an Carpathian hits maturity-usually around their 250th year-we age dramatically slow. My grand uncle is more than a millennium old and he appears perhaps no more than thirty. There are other Ancient Carpathian's just as young in appearance."

The room gasped "how is this possible!?"

"We sleep in the earth and she sustains, protects and nourishes us. Over time our race has learned to absorb the nutrients she gives us from her while we rest. When we are hurt or injured she aids us and helps us heal. We are very difficult to kill, and Carpathian's rarely scar."

Shino spoke "my theory is over the time they existed and slept buried in the earth, their bodies adapted to absorb minerals and nutrients from the soil, until it became stronger and more resilient. Which is why the act of changing an human over is so traumatic to a human, they are forcing those minerals and such into an human body, forcing them to adapt in an matter of minutes to what THEY spent hundreds of years to."

"And the woman survives if she's 'gifted'?"

"Yes. We have had many human women successfully transition to Carpathian over the last twenty or so years."

Snake spoke "what if the male chooses wrong? What happens then? How do we know it will be everything you promise?" she ignored the sharp looks of the others in the room.

"As an Carpathian male grows older without his lifemate he begins to loose the ability to see in color and feel emotions. The only thing he FEELS is the thrill of a kill during a feed and even then it is shallow. An lifemate restores those emotions and color to him. This is how we KNOW she is for us, no one else can do this for us."

"And it has NEVER been wrong?" she looked him in the eyes, daring him to lie-or tell the truth. He just looked back and said firmly "NEVER."

She blinked behind her mask then looked at the blonde woman "Hokage-sama I am prepared to become an.....I mean accept my position as an lifemate to a male of the race."

 "Wait a minute!" the other female jumped down from her hiding place and approached her "what are you saying sister?! Do you know what you're doing?! You would have to leave the ANBU!!"

The female reached out to touch the other gently "I know, little sister, but I only joined to protect you" she turned to look at the blonde "if we both become wiv...lifemate's to an male, he would have to understand he can't come between us. We may be twins but she is my little sister and her heart and soul are both very fragile. I have protected her since the day our parents died and will continue to do so, male or no male."

Naruto spoke out "he will understand. What is important to you, is important to HIM. When you become lifemates he will feel everything you will and want to protect her just as fiercely" he looked at the other woman "so will HERS." He looked back at her "family is VERY important to us, he will see her as a little sister as well and protect her as an true alpha would."

The snake masked ANBU turned to face the blonde woman, kneeling in front of her desk on one knee, one hand in a fist pressed over her heart as she said firmly "Hokage-sama, I request to leave the ANBU and be appointed emissary of Hidden Leaf to the Carpathian's."

Everyone, even her 'sister' blinked at her. "But...." the other ANBU woman started to protest.

The blonde spoke "I can't grant that request when we're so short on ninja right now, you know that" the woman said back to her. At the other woman's slouched shoulders she continued "however an infiltration mission for two of my best ANBU for an indefinite amount of time...."

The woman's voice was smiling when she spoke "thank you, Lady Tsunade!" she looked at her sister who nodded before turning to Naruto "when can we go there?"

"I need to rescue this ninja and organize my mating my lifemate with her father. I suggest you sort out any affairs of your own meantime." He suddenly cocked his head and his eyes went vacant for a few seconds.

When he did, the others in the room noticed Team Eight did the same. When they had all come back the blonde spoke "mother spoke with the Prince. He has organized an escort to guide and guard you both to him. In three nights time he will meet you on the other side of the portal and take you directly to the Prince himself. I will escort you there to meet him."

The woman frowned "we can protect ourselves."

"I don't doubt you, but our world is different than this in major ways. There is no chakra, technology has become more advanced and deadly and even citizens use it. On top of that there is vampires out looking for women to forcefully turn and control, you would not be safe."

The three woman and hidden ANBU looked at him "VAMPIRES?! They're just stories to scare people."

He shook his head and Shino explained "not in his world, Hokage, they are real."

"When an Carpathian spends too long without a lifemate he has two choices. Seek the dawn and end his life nobly, or give in the whispers of the beast inside him and kill during a feed. In that case they give up their souls to the evil within, becoming a creature of pure evil and corruption, a vampire, existing purely to make everyone suffer, ALL other races, human, Carpathian and other.

They are pure evil, living only for the suffering of others, for the torture and blood they can create through their actions. They manipulate, lie and are cowardly, they do not fight with any honor and often the more powerful ones will use the new as cannon fodder. They use them to wear a Hunter down before attacking while they are weakened or injured."

He looked intently at the women "even though they have given in to the evil inside, they still seek gifted women. Some think despite what they've become they can still save their soul, but it is no longer possible, their soul is forever gone. However if they find an gifted female they will force themselves on her-in more ways then one."

All women in the room winced, knowing what he WASN'T saying.

"They will force them to take their blood, forcing the transition on them. Believe me when I say when an Carpathian does this, it is not as bad as it CAN be. A Carpathian will take most of their partners pain and help her through it, an constant presence both in and out of her mind to reassure her and make her as comfortable as possible before sending her to sleep once it's safe to do so. An Vampire does not care, he revels in pain and fear. You can not begin to imagine what those women go through. Is it any wonder or surprise they go completely insane?"

"Has anyone survived being forced by a vampire?"

A few, but so few. I know of only two and they survived either because their lifemates were able to communicate with them through a mental link, or their lifemates found them before the change was complete and were able to.....complete it themselves." He went on "they can appear beautiful and kind, your idea of an dream man, but in reality it is all an illusion created to seduce and deceive. It seems you ninja have a strong sense of danger, use that. If you sense something is wrong, it is."

The woman frowned "then how will we know the one to meet us?"

"He will have an code for you." She frowned "what code?"

"You will know it when you hear it." She frowned "why can't you tell us?"

"Vampires can read minds just like us. I tell you the code and they will know. If you do not know it and someone approaches you without it, with no idea of one, you know they are not the one."

They understood and the blonde woman spoke out "so if vampires are evil of your race, and you are the.....normal, what happens? Who stops them?"

"Hunters. Carpathian males with no family or lifemates. They hunt the vampire and protect all life from their evil." He looked at the snake-ANBU "your escort will more than likely be a Hunter, they have both the knowledge and skill. So just obey him so he can properly protect you. Do not be surprised if he seems cold and cruel and demands your instant full obedience, he will be honor-bound to protect you and without emotions or feelings will not see any reason to allow you to endanger yourselves."

"What if HE is one of the ones who is our...... lifemates?"

"After the initial shock of the emotions and colors returning his immediate reaction will be to take you away from everyone else so he can bond to you and bind you to him with the Sarna Rituaali--or Ritual Words. This will INCLUDE your sister. This is an alpha reaction, his soul is close to the edge and will need you to anchor him. The returned feelings can overpower them and make them unstable at first, so struggling or protesting, fighting will only make the beast more aggressive. By this I do not mean he'll take your body by force, but the dominate male AND desire to ensure he claims you before another does will overpower everything else.

Carpathian males are creatures of honor, but no matter what, it is inborn into us to care for our females and their feelings, it is instinct to both body and mind. Your sister is pack, he will recognize that even if he is close. I know as an ANBU you are taught to ignore your emotions and feelings, but here they will be an advantage. She is your sister, you love her and want nothing to happen to her-tell him that. Explain you do not want her left behind to be in danger from Vampires. Explain the Prince is expecting you both. If he does not drop your sister off directly at the Prince's side, he will take her to someone he trusts. Once bonded he will be more stable."

"You mentioned bonding, what is that?"

"Your father mentioned that before" Hinata said "and you said it wasn't the time or place. You said you'd tell us here. Tell us."

"When a male finds his lifemate he speaks the Sarna Rituaali-Ritual Words, binding them body and soul together forever. These words are ancient, imprinted on every Carpathian's soul on birth. Gifted females do not know them but the males do. When they find their lifemate their first instinct is to bind her to him by speaking the words to her. They are constant the longer they remain apart, everything in a male telling him to use them."

They looked at him curiously "what exactly happens?"

"Typically the bonding happens on the first blood exchange. The male speaks the words to the female during and the bonding happens" he made what appeared to be a helpless gesture "it is difficult to explain."

"Try."

He thought about it "the way that it has been described to me, it is like millions of tiny silver threads weaving mind and soul together. Once done there is no going back, the threads are there forever, or until one or both die."

They thought about this before Hinata stepped forward "Bind us."

Everyone blinked at her "what?" and the blonde shook his head "you are not ready...."

"I AM" she said firmly, reaching out to touch his cheek "if we do this, no one-least of all my father-can separate us. I will get you both, the REAL Naruto and the one I knew. They are both you and they are both mine."

"If we do this there is no going back."  
"I don't WANT to go back."

"Why are you hesitating?" Shino asked "you want this, do you not? Is there something causing you to be reluctant?"

"After the first blood exchange the reactions you witnessed when we separate will become worse. After the bonding she will NEED to touch me, mentally and physically, constantly. After the first they rarely part. An male will even take his lifemate to his resting place so they can be together. If not he ensures she will not wake during those hours he rests."

"So either she will sleep all day and only be up during the night with you, or you will take her to wherever you sleep to stay there."

He nodded.

"Can she function during the day?"

He nodded again "but it would be difficult. Her senses will be stronger, sunlight will hurt her eyes and she will feel tired. It will be difficult to concentrate on anything more than a few minutes and she will constantly NEED to touch my mind-and if I am not there, she will be struck by the overwhelming feeling I am dead, even if she knows it is not true."

"And this is common?"

He nodded "not when both mates are already Carpathian, but when one is human."

The snake ANBU frowned "WE will go through this?" He nodded again "if you don't go through the transition straight away. While you normally think by intellect, there is nothing about it that is thought and reason. You will react by pure emotion."

"Are you trying to scare me away?" Hinata said firmly "because I won't be. Do it." He blinked at her "right here and now?"

"Why not?!"

"Because a blood exchange is erotic, for both sides. You want others to witness you like that?"

She hesitated, blushing "well...."

"IF you truly wish to do this now, I can ensure they do not witness anything" he said almost reluctantly "I can blur their senses, or ourselves. They will see and hear only what I wish them to."

"Do it" she said, meaning both the blurring and exchange. He leaned down to kiss her. The minute his lips touched hers she melted, hands gripping his arms to keep herself up.

Those strong golden-skinned limbs surrounded her, holding her up and to him and she moaned when she felt the proof of his desire for her pressed between them. It came as a surprise when the jewel around her neck warmed and his mind filled hers.

She felt everything-EVERYTHING. All he felt for her filled her up. Tears filled her eyes, it was true-all of it. He DID find her incredibly beautiful, DID think she was sexy, DID desire her, heart and soul. He WANTED and NEEDED her and her love as if it was the very air he breathed, her protection and safety was his priority, because she could feel it, the madness that would take him should she die.

And in the background, just very softly as if from a distance, she could hear a feminine voice humming a song she had never heard before but felt somehow familiar. It filled her up, thrumming in her veins, made her feel like she was a part of something.

The weird part was her chakra reacted to it, reaching out to him, to HER through him.

She drew in a deep breath as his hands moved up to move underneath her jacket to touch her breasts, flicking her nipples in small movements that made her gasp and want to writhe.

At the same time his kisses deepened, becoming more intense, more demanding. She did what she could to return the intensity, but it was catching her up in the flow-like a blade of grass in the middle of an firestorm.

Slowly his mouth moved, spreading kisses across her cheek to nuzzle her ear and allow his tongue to pull the lobe into his lips and mouth and gently gnaw on it.

Hinata gasped and her body bowed.

After playing with this for a while he started the move down again, hands unzipping her jacket and slowly raise her under-mesh shirt.

When his firm moist lips closed over her breast, she thought she'd die of pleasure. He worked on that breast for a few seconds before moving to the next. By that time Hinata was tugging on his hair between gasps, unsure if she was trying to pull him away or closer.

Once he had paid that nipple and breast what HE FELT was enough attention, he moved to its twin, paying it the same love as the other. She wanted to writhe, more importantly return the pleasure, so she stepped closer, hands reaching down to touch that throbbing point of his.

He groaned against her flesh and shuddered in pleasure before his voice in her head-thick with lust-stopped her _"do not, jela lamti. I have to remain in control here and now to do this."_

To her pleasure-filled mind this didn't make sense to her, why? Why have control?

Before she could even think of a way or if she should ask, there was a sharp pain in her breast that gave way to white-hot pleasure, sweeping the last of her control and thought away.

The only thing that formed in her head, ANYTHING resembling a thought was _"more, MORE!"_ as her body bucked, burning up and out of control. She felt pleasure, WAS pleasure, it consumed her, sobbing softly with the intensity of it.

A voice filled her head and ears, two different words in union and meaning, filling her being.

 _"Te avio päläfertiilam."_  
"You are my lifemate."

 _"Entölam kuulua avio päläfertiilam."_  
"I claim you as my lifemate."

 _"Ted kuuluak, kacad, kojed."_  
"I belong to you."

 _"Élidamet andam."_  
"I offer my life for you."

 _"Pesämet andam."_  
"I give you my protection."

 _"Uskolferttiilamet andam."_  
"I give you my allegiance."

 _"Sívamet andam."_  
"I give you my heart."

 _"Sielamet andam."_  
"I give you my soul."

"Ainamet andam."  
"I give you my body."

She could feel him pull away from her flesh and wanted to protest, to grab his head and keep it there, but he was to strong for her to stop. His head moved away, her body trembling as he licked her flesh one last time and his mouth was on hers. _"Sívamet kuuluak kaik että a ted."_  
"I take into my keeping the same that is yours." He murmured against her mouth.

She could sense an quick motion and then his mouth was pulling away from hers, compelling her forwards with a firm but gentle hand to the back of her head. As her lips touched his chest he gasped loudly, pressing her closer. She sensed his need combining with her own and the song in one, and behind her closed eye-lids hundreds of beautiful silver threads appeared, weaving with hers, the song becoming real-a fine rainbow of colors-and weaving around and through theirs, making a breathtaking pattern unlike she had ever seen before. It brought tears to her eyes.

 _"Ainaak oolenszal sivambin."_  
"Your life will be cherished by me for all my time."

 _"Te élidet ainaak pide minan."_  
"Your life will be placed above my own for all time."

 _"Te avio päläfertiilam."_  
"You are my lifemate."

 _"Ainaak sívamet jutta oleny."_  
"You are bound to me for all eternity."

 _"Ainaak terád vigyázak."_  
"You are always in my care."

It was too much, the threads snapping together and song making what could only be described as an blanket, or rug altogether, filling her mind. Everything crescendoed in a blaze of light, feeling and absolute euphoria until she could no longer take it and it went black.

  
Naruto healed the wound on his chest, pulling his lifemate up to kiss her briefly before adjusting her clothes and his own. Gently he picked her up fully before removing the illusion of blur and carrying his woman over to place her in the only other seat in the room, a couch.

Then he turned to look from his position beside her at the other blonde "I need the coordinates of your ninja's last known location and his description. This needs to be done before sunrise."They frowned "aren't you going to stay with Hinata until she wakes up?" He stood and moved away from the couch, only to remain there. Two sets of blue eyes blinked at her.

They were agog.

"Shadow clone?! I thought you don't remember anything!?"

"Most Hunters know or can use clones. It is an useful tool, especially when fighting vampires."

Shino frowned "how real is it?"

The clone turned to look at him while the original spoke "it is me in every way. They have to be as real as possible so a Vampire is convinced it is the real thing. Scent, thought, blood and bone. He knows EVERYTHING I do, has my memories and will remain while I go."

They nodded and just then Shizune returned with the approved mission scroll "the desk Chunnins didn't approve of me standing over them while they processed this, but I made sure it went through. They thought I was crazy having Naruto's name put on it, but Iruka-sensei took control. He said to remind Shino-san he is to come see him when they're done" she looked at the young man who nodded.

"The details are in this" the blonde woman handed the rolled scroll over to him. He took it, looked it over closely, then nodded, handing it back. Before anyone could speak his body became see-through and he was gone. Hinata stirred from where she lay, eyes fluttering as if trying to force them open and herself awake. Kiba, Akamaru, Shino and Snake-ANBU crowded around behind the clone to watch her awaken. Slowly the pale violet eyes opened, her first sight of the blonde.

A deep blush filled her cheeks. Kiba laughed, Akamaru barked and the Snake-nin snorted back her reaction. Hinata's arm covered her face and she murmured weakly "how much did you see and hear?"

"Nothing" the blonde clone said. She frowned, moving her arm slightly to peek under at him "what do you mean, nothing? They wouldn't be reacting like that if they didn't see or hear anything."

"You did not wish it, so I prevented it. All they heard was the translation of the Ritual Words I spoke, they witnessed nothing."

"Then why...?"

"Did I not say an exchange was a very erotic experience for both? You were also unconscious at the end." She thought about for a minute then nodded, realizing he was right. They could only guess and did not truly know what happened. Thinking about it only made her blush harder. However memories of that happened brought up ANOTHER memory. She looked at him "who was singing?"

He frowned at her "singing?" She nodded "you didn't hear it? It was very faint but I definitely heard singing, humming. She felt....safe, like she was watching over us. I felt her power mix with ours. It was like all three of us were one."

He looked startled, shocked "you HEARD and felt that?!"

"Yes" she nodded, frowning at him "who and what was it?"

"Carpathians are of the earth, nature, she is a part of us and nurtures us, she is our mother. Mother, Father and I are her children, more so the others of our race." The group looked shocked "you mean THAT was the earth speaking to you?!" He nodded "however in THIS WORLD she is oddly silent, I barely hear or feel her."

"So I was hearing the song of Mother Nature? And she was so faint because she is on the other side of the portal?" He nodded. "What was she so happy about?" Hinata looked thoughtful "I could feel it. She was humming a song because she was pleased" she looked at him for answers. "And why would she not?" he asked her "when her daughter took the first step to being as she was meant to be, her child." They blinked at him but were further startled when he suddenly grinned and they were momentarily frightened by the.....wolf in that smile.

"What is it?"

"I have located your ninja."

"ALREADY!?" the blonde woman's eyes widened "where is he?"

"Enemy territory as you thought. Seems they have a new group of Elite ninja's-if your man's memories are correct-that overpowered him."

Her eyes narrowed "get him out, whatever means possible. If they have a new group of Shinobi able to overpower even HIM, we NEED those memories, that information."


	9. 9

*******************************

When he awoke slowly, he sensed things were different than before. Instead of cold stone and scratchy hay he felt cloth and firm earth. Instead of cold stale air he felt the unmistakable sensation of fresh open air. Instead of the smell of mold, old and new blood and urine, he smelt a fire, cooking fish and trampled grass. His mouth had the taste of fruit instead of that of his own blood. He actually could place the fruit he was tasting!

Warmth surrounded his body, soft and warmth, like a sleeping bag, his head rested on something equally soft. He didn't want to move, to enjoy it while he could.

He took stock of his body, a bit at a time, carefully examining himself. He was not bound, his body tightly trussed up by cloth, not rope or chain. So it WAS a sleeping bag he was in, the feeling was unmistakably HIS. He knew every inch of the feel of the inside and it offered him a strong measure of comfort and safety.

His body-so full of agony and pain for so long-and downright filthy, felt clean and healed, even the sickness from the infection he had had in that dark cell. He was SURE he was so close to death there he had craved it, escape from the torture, pain and humiliation, away from the painful memories of all those he had failed in life, failed to save and the one he had failed to find. But here he was now, healed, clean, comfortable, the unmistakable sounds of a forest surrounding him.

Forest, he couldn't be that far away from Hidden Leaf then. Who had healed him? Had the Hokage sent someone out to rescue him? That was too dangerous both to those sent out and politically. Any Leaf ninja seen trying to get in would cause political strife. They couldn't prove he was there and it could be seen as their village trying to get information for an invasion. Or at least, that was how they could spin it.

Those who had caught him were obviously Elite nin, past anything ANBU or Hunter-Nin, he hadn't even sensed them before they were on him. He hadn't even the chance to uncover the Sharingan.

Before he could think on the subject further there was a low growl, a wolf. He froze, alert. He felt weak both in chakra and body, he had no idea where his weapons were, he was helpless. A second growl followed, shocked when a voice answered them, human and vaguely familiar, amused "I am aware, my brother's and sister's."

Kakashi frowned, he had a feeling that first three words were aimed at him. The wolves had alerted the man with him of his conscious state, however he had either sensed or known this himself. But why was the voice familiar? He didn't know anyone with a wolf summons and he had the sense this person wasn't an enemy. On the contrary, it was someone he trusted and cared for. But who? And why?

"Go, hunt, I shall join you shortly."  He blinked, shocked. That voice had been in his head, not out loud! And he had had the feeling he had done it to shock or tease him, to test him! He opened his right eye, careful to keep the left closed, and glared at the shadowy figure surrounded by four young wolves. With his experience with canines they couldn't be more than five humans years, but being summons there was no telling.

The voice in his head was amused "they are NOT summons." He was kneeling among them, hands buried in their thick coats. They seemed to be winter wolves, their fur silver with various markings, eyes blue.

He frowned. A canine was always born with blue eyes, but they changed color after their pup years and while these were young, they were old enough they SHOULD be past that. So why were they still blue? Was it the breed? He had never seen silver winter wolves before, only knew what they were by the thickness of the coat and they were obviously built for speed in the snow.

And if they weren't summons, what was he doing with wild winter wolves like nothing he had seen before?! The figure stood, giving them a nudge so they took the hint and left together, an low bark of farewell as they left.

He frowned at the figure "you shouldn't let them hunt this close to the village. A farmer might see them and think they are after their animals and try to hurt them."

The figure sounded amused "they know to avoid humans and not to hunt other than game. Even then, they can take care of themselves."

"They are very.....unique. I don't think I've ever seen ones like them. It was almost like they were highly intelligent and could understand your every word. If they are not summons, what are they?" he asked as the shadowed figure moved to a campfire where two cooked fish waited with a cooking pot bubbling away over the flames. While the figure ripped the fish apart, throwing the flesh into the pot with the sweet smell of stew, he spoke "where I come from their breed is common, however THESE are unique. Like myself they share a connection to nature that allows them abilities and powers unheard of before another of their breed. My mother and father bare the first six to exist. My sister and her.....husband, bare their first four offspring, now I have the four of the next litter."

He understood. His parents had found the first six unique wolves and breed them.

The figure shook his head as he stirred the pot "my mother was gravely wounded by enemies and the wolves protected her. Because of that the enemy killed the adults and left the pups to die. They were all my mother had, she was forced to...do what she had to to save them. She was half-mad at that point-still gravely wounded so what she did made them unique.  Since then she has kept them with her, ensuring they do not harm humans or do anything to seem as a threat. They stay with my parents and are a part of our home, our pack."

He pondered. It was obvious the man with him was an dominant male-he felt all alpha. How alpha wolves could be among people without viaing for status was beyond him.

The males chuckle was deep and full of power "my mother is the alpha, my brother-in-law is the alpha just as I am the alpha. When we get together, we are family. My little brothers and sisters obey THEIR sires, just as I do" He looked at him pointedly "we are pack, and pack protects and aids each other."

"They understood you before? When you spoke to them?"

"Wolves communicate in images or pictures more than words. It is just a matter of understanding that on top of body-language."

"And the howling. And what do you mean by images and pictures? You can read their minds?! Or is this one of the abilities you mentioned."

"Yes to both" he said, approaching with a fresh steaming bowl of stew "you are malnourished from your imprisonment, you need sustenance" he held the bowl out to him "here, eat. There is plenty more if you wish."

He frowned suspiciously at him as he froze in an half-sitting position "who are you and why did you help me?"

The man chuckled darkly "I am not your enemy. In fact, from what I hear, we have known each other some time ago."

His one visible eye narrowed "you HEAR? Surely you would know."

"Events in my past meant anything other than recent have been....locked away. It is unknown by my family and those who knew me if they would ever return, but the trauma was quiet severe."

He understood this. As a ninja anything could happen to you at any given day-the fact he was overpowered so easily proof of that. If this young man had suffered something so severe he lost his memory just to survive, he could believe that. He took the bowl and asked as he dug in "so you are from Hidden Leaf who disappeared at some time."

"So my parents and....wife think so. I do not remember." He finished the first bowl quickly, surprising himself so the other brought him another "are you the one that healed me?"

"Correct, you were on the brink of death. Everyone in my family know how to heal, it is a requirement of the job in a strange way."

He nodded, he came from a family of healers then, probably medi-nin "whatever you did worked amazingly. Yes I'm weak and probably malnourished past the point of being useful, but I haven't felt this good in years. All those little aches and pains are gone. Arigatou."

The figure seemed amused "you are welcome. Truly my 'rescuing' you from that place was just a test."

"What do you mean?"

"My return to the village after so long, despite my....abilities, will not be received well. So in order to prove my 'value'-so to speak-I volunteered to locate and bring you back without you capturers being aware of it. It was a simple thing for me to enter and take you-and your things-out without their knowledge. We are not far from your village. By tomorrow night you will be returned to your home."

"Will you be returning there as well? I'd like to get to know you, maybe help you regain your memories, or at least knowledge of them." The other figure nodded "I have business with my wife's clan. They will refuse to believe we are already married and intend to hand her over to some fool who thinks he can touch what is mine" the air around them went ice-cold "they will learn their place."

He nearly choked on the last mouthful of his stew "you can't threaten a clan in Kohona, even if you ARE one of us!"

His voice was steely when he spoke, the ring of an true alpha "I have no need for threats, I am speaking mere fact. They will not be able to complete such an action, let alone consider it. While my wife would not wish harm on those she sees as family, there is no choice in the matter" he took the empty bowl from him "do you wish more to eat?"

"What?" he was still stunned by his statement.

"Do you wish more to eat, or have you had your fill?"

"No, I'm full."

"Then sleep."

"But....."

"Sleep. We can talk more at another time."

"But I...."

Red eyes locked to his and that was it, everything went black.

***********************************

An abrupt jolt awoke him. He felt himself being lowered to the ground, his finely turned sense of danger-instinct honed through years of being ANBU and ninja-telling him he was in danger and to wake up. He heard voices, his rescuer and others, definitely familiar. It was the Elite, the ones who had captured him. Somehow they had found them.

He frowned, his finely turned sense of direction telling him they were almost at the border of Hidden Leaf, so close to the village and aid! He HAD to help him! He had jutsu but his chakra was low due to his malnourished body. He had the strength for maybe one.....

"Do not"  the voice was amused and firm "I can handle these humans. Do not interfere."

"You don't understand...."  He said "these are Elite, they....."

"Are human" he answered “and I have my brothers and sister's to watch my back if it comes to that. Do not interfere, stay there.”

As he struggled against the lethargy that struck him, he listened. He heard and felt jutsu’s, the gloating turning to frustrated voices of the Elite, the occasional deep laugh of his rescuer at their inability to even touch him.

At one point the leader of the enemy yelled "WHO AND WHAT IS THIS GUY?!" his only answer the deep laugh of "something beyond you, human."

Once he even heard the wolves come into play, although he had been unable to sense or hear them before then. One of the Elite was creeping up behind his allie-he could feel it. He was about to call a warning when he heard an muffled snarl. There was a shocked "what in the Kami's names....." followed by sound of something metal dropping and an scream of terror suddenly cut off. His allies voice snapped "Tensei!", an overpowering sense of dominance and a wolf whine of submission and the presence was gone again mysteriously.

As an ninja with a dog summons and who had grown up with and among them, he was instantly dominated and it confused him. Even the Elite gasped.

"Leave now and the rest of you may live."

The Elite gathered their courage, confident in themselves (The ego) and the fact that their adversary showed no signs of jutsu or chakra. Idiots. He finally opened his eyes, slowly, excruciatingly. What he saw shocked and horrified him. His allie had the last of the Elite clutched in an steal grip, head buried in his neck-the enemy ninja limp in his grasp. His gasp had the eyes move up, locking with his.

Carelessly the other finished, dropping the figure on the ground. He started towards him and at first he thought he was to end him now when he heard thunder and before he knew it lightening lit up the scene, burning away all blood and signs of battle, including the bodies left while a strong breeze picked up the ashes remaining to carry them away.

His eyes locked to the other and he spoke one word "Karpatii."

The figure paused but before either could speak another bolt of lightening lit up the clearing. To show the muscular figure wearing no shirt. A tattoo showed starkly on the shoulder causing his eyes to widen in surprise "Dragonseeker?!" Then his eyes moved up to the face and widened the rest of the way "NARUTO?!" The raw emotions were too much for his weakened body. The concern, fear, confusion, joy, pain, relief and everything else swept him up in the flow and forced him under.

********************************

Kakashi awoke abruptly, shooting into seated position with a yell. His first conscious thought was confusion, where was he, why was he laying in a bed in a hospital room?

Then slowly memory came back. The Elite, the dank cell, tortured for information, hardly fed and not knowing how long he was there as his body and chakra weakened from very little food and water. Even Orochimaru kept his prisoners in better condition.

Sickness, giving up hope, wanting to die so he would no longer be a burden on those around him.

But something was missing, something important and how did he end up here?

His mind cast back, trying to piece it together.

Everything between then and now was hazy, confusing. Screams, wolves, lightening, comfortable, delicious stew, clans, wives, danger, secrets. What happened to him?

He tried calming himself, to put it back together in order. First comfort, what? That's right, his sleeping bag. He had awoken in his sleeping bag, healed and painless but weak. Next wolves, that's right, his rescuer had wolves with him. He had spoke with him, gave him that delicious fish stew. After very little food and water for so long, the stew had been heavenly-not to mention the taste! The man must have been a master chief in a previous life! And he let him have as much as he wanted while they spoke, he didn't remember how many bowls he had but he wanted more!

His stomach growled noisily.

Getting control of his hunger he continued to concentrate.

Talking to him about.....that's right, clans and the others wife. It seemed that her clan refused to accept their marriage and was trying to give her to another. A lot of clans were like that. They insisted their members marry inside the clan-to keep bloodlines and 'pure blood' true. Obviously she had chosen someone OUTSIDE the clan to love or marry and the clan refused to accept this, an outsider.

But his rescuer implied they had no choice, why? Had he gotten her pregnant? Was he from another powerful clan and THEY had chosen her to be his wife?

Next he remembered sleeping and then being awoken abruptly by danger. The Elite! They had somehow found him and his rescuer had gone into the battle with them alone!

But wait, they had stood no chance he had slaughtered them all. THAT was the screams. He had destroyed the bodies and site with lightening-so there was nothing to trace it back to Hidden Leaf.

He frowned, there was something more. What was it? The Elite dead....walking towards him...

THAT'S when it hit him, he remembered!

"NARUTO!" he cried, eyes flying open as he looked around desperately. It WASN'T a dream! He had been real! He was THERE! And that wasn't all he had been...."Karpatii!"

Someone snapped his name and his head immediately shot around to find, not Sakura as he expected, but Lady Tsunade.

"Hokage-sama, where is Naruto!? Please, I have to see him! Where is he?!"

The woman frowned "you are SUPPOSED to be trying to report and besides, I thought he said he never told you who he was?"

"He didn't, I SAW him, during the fight! Please, Hokage-sama, I NEED to see him! I HAVE to know if....."

The blonde woman frowned "for you to refused a report over something else means either it's incredibly important to you or the village. Which is it?"

“Both!” he said desperately “please, Hokage-sama, I thought he was dead, I have to see for myself he really IS alive!!”

The blonde woman crossed her arms across her chest, under her ample bosom. “He’s busy right now. The council are trying to make things.... difficult with his mating the Hyuuga heir.” Kakashi blinked “Hyuuga? Naruto’s lifemate is Hinata Hyuuga?”

The woman frowned at him “how do you KNOW about lifemates?! I was under the impression NO ONE in the Elemental Nations knew about the Carpathian Race.” Kakashi looked like he wanted to evade but the woman looked at him sternly “As your Hokage I ORDER to tell me.”

The cyclops sighed “I was sworn to silence, but there was once a female of their race here.”

“By who?”

“My sensei-the Forth.” Tsunade Senju blinked “why would Minato hide the existence of this woman from us?” Kakashi blinked back “when did Naruto awaken his heritage, Hokage-sama?”

“Heritage? What are you talking about?”

“Naruto, how did he awaken it?” he frowned at the woman “how else did he become a Karpatii?” His eyes widened all the way “don’t tell me....he was changed, transitioned?! I had no idea there was another of them here! If that was to happen the effect would be excruciating!! ” He sounded panicked “the gate! It opened again, didn’t it!!”                 

Tsunade looked at him and with a voice of authority said “You will tell me EVERYTHING you know,  I don’t care if you made a vow, as your Hokage I ORDER you to tell me what you know.”

Next to the Hokage her assistant Shizune frowned at him “why would the Forth make you vow to keep it a secret if it wasn’t something vital to the village security?”

“Because it was important to his wife.”  
“Why would Kushina Uzumaki care?”

“Because she was descended from them, ALL Uzumaki’s were.”

Stunned silence.

“Why else do you think they were so different? The powerful seals, the unusually high vitality and longer lifespan, their ability to survive an extraction of the tailed beasts......”

“So the Uzumaki’s are descendants of an Carpathian, perhaps having bred with humans or ninja? That was how Naruto was able to survive the change?” Kakashi shook his head “even though they have their blood in their line, Minato discovered that if one of them were to go through the Transition it would prove too traumatic due to the chakra of an ninja. The nine tailed MIGHT have been powerful enough to save his life, but chances are the effects would kill him. He wouldn’t survive” he looked serious “when I saw him I thought he had awakened his heritage, but you’re telling me he was turned instead?”

The blonde nodded.

“No wonder he lost his memory” the cyclops looked thoughtful “Naruto with his inheritance from them BOTH, plus the nine tailed and his own chakra forced into the transition? I’m surprised he didn’t go insane and be put down because of it.”

The woman spoke firmly “tell me what you know.”

The cyclops sighed and settled back in his hospital bed “centuries ago a Karpatii woman found herself stuck in our world. She was pregnant and had just lost her lifemate to an enemy. Female lifemates-especially Karpatii-when they loose their mates, are empty, vacant, their spirits die and then the body follows. She lived long enough to give birth to a child, a daughter, left behind books on their history and abilities and then died, leaving the child to a group of civilians to raise. That girl was the first Uzumaki. The line came from her and the human ninja who fell in love with her.”

“How did they know all this?”

“Minato-sensei researched for Kushina-chan. They found the books she left and the information on the gate between the Elemental Nations and their world. Minato-san sent a team to investigate the site, but it was nowhere. It seemed to have closed.”

“Well it seemed to have reopened, both a few weeks ago then a bit more than 10 years ago.” Kakashi looked at her “you mean....Naruto? That’s what happened to him, why he disappeared?” To his surprise and shock the blonde woman looked guilty, upset and angry. Shizune moved to her sensei’s side and surrounded her in her arms “it wasn’t your fault, Hokage-sama.”

“I should have known, I should have sensed something wrong.”

“You’re not to blame, Tsunade-sama, no one knew so how could you?” Kakashi’s eyes locked to the other woman “what happened?”

“It was Sakura” she said sadly “she forged an mission scroll and hired men, rogue ninja, to attack Naruto-san.”

“But why?!”

“She blamed Naruto-oi for Sasuke leaving. Apparently she has become more than a little obsessed with him, has even convinced herself the two were madly in love with each other since they were kids. In HER mind Naruto’s constant competition with him in their Academy days drove him away and by being put in the bingo books as a traitor prevented him from returning to her-as if he was trying to protect her” she snorted “as if. Inoichi Yamanaka has examined her and found no basis for her illusions.”

“She kicked him in the back” the blonde sounded choked “she shattered his spine then laughed when he couldn’t defend himself again the beating.”

Shizune went on “by what Shino Abrahume told us they learned from the couple who changed and adopted Naruto, there was a three month period between these events and their finding him in which he must have been fighting to live and heal. It seems that the beating and damage was supposed to make him pliant for the Akatsuki to remove the demon. But it seems they never arrived. Our spy among them says they got the message but the leader decided not to follow through. He thought it wasn’t worth their time, a trap of some sort. We have theorized that Naruto-oi crawled away to find help and went through this....gate without knowing.”

“How did he come to be...changed?”

“He made friends with an Carpathian child” the young woman explained what they had learned.

“So he lost his memory as a drawback from the trauma of his awakening Karpatii blood, combined with the pure blood and his chakra and the nine tailed fighting each other.”

“It seems so” the woman nodded “no one is sure if he will ever regain them again.”

“And no one knows if the nine-tailed is destroyed or still exists inside him.”

“No. It is theorized however that during the change he was forced to....assimilate it to survive. Ivory-sama-the one who is his adopted mother-has claimed that she has seen not a trace of it or it’s power since that first day.”

“Humm” Kakashi looked thoughtful “which clan is this Ivory-san?”

“Malinov, but her lifemate was Dragonseeker” she frowned in concern at his reaction “what is it?”

“The clan the female came from, it was CALLED Dragonseeker, Naruto has somehow ended up back in his proper clan.”


	10. 10

Hours later Naruto was frowning at this information "an female of our race, MY FATHER'S line, was here centuries ago, trapped and left her daughter behind to become the first of my genetic mother's line?"

They nodded.

He looked at Kakashi "father says he has no idea of any females having gone missing during from our line. Great granduncle says he can only think of great grandmother, are you sure she was Dragonseeker?"

He nodded "the books said so. She had a mark too, the same as you have tattooed on your shoulder, but as a birthmark on the stomach above the bellybutton."

The blonde nodded "all Dragonseeker are born with that mark. It burns whenever Vampire are nearby."

"You don't have it?" Tsunade asked but he shook his head "no, hence the tattoo."

"The seal, Hokage sama" Kakashi said "even Kushina-chan had it, but Naruto is more like his father than his mother. Then there is the fact that the seal is precisely where it WOULD have been when he was born."

"Humm" the woman rubbed her chin thoughtfully "you are right, it is possible the seal either interferes or locked away the effects of the birthmark." She looked at the blonde "it would have been classed as your kekkai genkai, even if it was not necessary here."

The blonde shrugged, not caring, then cocked his head "great granduncle says he is querying with the Prince and the Ancients to see if any are aware of a missing couple of Dragonseeker lineage from centuries ago perhaps." He blinked a few times then obviously repeated what he was hearing "The Prince suggested that it could have been possible during the human war in our land in the past. Many of our people were caught in the crossfire and lost their lives, it is possible her lifemate was killed during and she wondered off. What was her name if you know at all?"

Kakashi thought about it "the daughter was named Yukari, but the mother....." he seemed to struggle to think about it. Tsunade frowned “do you know her name at all? Was it written in her books or told to anyone before she died? And where ARE these books?”

“Yes” Naruto agreed to her question “information in those books could identify her or her mate.”  
Kakashi shook his head “they were with Kushina-chan when the nine-tailed attacked the village. I have no idea what happed to them. It’s possible the nine tailed knows, but since we have no idea if it’s even around anymore let alone able to communicate.....”

Naruto frowned “why would the nine-tailed know?”

“Kushina Uzumaki was the third host of the nine-tailed before you. The beast probably saw it through her eyes.”

“So I.....inherited the ‘position’ from her.”

Both ninja’s exchanged glanced which made him narrow his eyes “what?”

“You weren’t supposed to!” Kakashi said quickly, trying to ignore his superiors glare. Yes, she could be angry at him, but he was desperate to keep in Naruto’s favor. He had lost one student to insanity, another to greed and revenge, Naruto was all he had left “your father didn’t want you to have that responsibility. He wanted you to live a happy life. But the nine-tailed getting free ruined that. Kushina was too weak, she wouldn’t survive resealing. YOU were an Uzumaki through her...”

He glared, “so use a child, a newborn!”

“He had no choice!” he protested.

“He’s right” Tsunade crossed her arms under her breasts “there was suspific conditions only available at the time. Only an human’s will, an human’s mental strength has the ability to hold back the beast. An adult’s chakra pathways are set in their ways, the flood of chakra from the beast would overload and kill them, leading to exactly the same problem again. A child however-or rather a newborn baby-is malleable. As they grow their body adapts to it, even learns use it themselves.”

Kakashi continued "the seal was only meant to give Naruto access to the foxes increased healing and allow a steady stream of chakra to be released into his own, increasing his own to allow a boost of sort if he needed it....."

"But according to something Naruto himself told me, my ex-teammate tampered with it, essentially unlocking it enough so that the buuji could take partial control at times of extreme emotions. This was confirmed by my other teammate Jiriaya."

When he cocked his head at her, Shizune explained "Jiriaya-sama is a seals expert. HE trained Minato-san in both seals and was his team leader when he was young. It was he whom taught him the eight trigrams seals, although he HAD forbid him to use it at the time. He was the one to keep an eye on Naruto's while they were traveling about 13 years ago."

"And he didn't repair the seal himself?"

"No he was unable. After learning from Jariaya-san, Minato-san went on to study and experiment with the subject, himself becoming a Seal Master. That involved changing what he was taught into something to fit his own needs, whatever the situation. When he used the eight trigrams it was no longer exactly what Jiriaya-sama knew. He WAS able to develop an temporary seal to repress the foxes chakra, but it couldn't be used too often or else Naruto-oi would adapt to it."

"And this extra seal used by the.....snake....was powerful enough to screw with the original."

They nodded then Tsunade blinked "how did you know about my ex-teammate being associated with snakes?"

"In my many conversations with my lifemate and her companions. They described him as an 'snake-nin.' However if not them then I would have seen it in your mind. You think of him often."

She sighed "I'll have to get used to your telepathy. I have to keep reminding myself. He was my teammate growing up. He witnessed his parents being killed as a child and should never have became a ninja. He was a kind soul who saw and did too much as a ninja than he shouldn't have. All that death made him obsessed with finding a way to live forever. First it was finding a way to ensure his only few loved ones-us mainly-didn't leave him to death, then somewhere along the way it changed to preventing his own."

"Perhaps" he reasoned "he realized he couldn't keep everyone else alive if HE died first."

"You think?"

"It is why our race is reluctant to associate with humans. WE will live far longer than you can imagine, watching a trusted human friend or allie grow old and die while you yourself are young and stay that way is not an enjoyable experience. It is also why our human lifemates are eventually brought into our world. NOT ONE of the males of our race has not turned her" he suddenly cocked his head, looking thoughtful "well, except one."

"Who?"

"One of my half-sisters, Lara. She is a gifted mage and is able to cleanse the pregnant women of our race of that which is preventing the birth of children. However if she is made fully Carpathian that MAY change. Because of this she and her lifemate are trying to give her time first while mother tries to isolate the lifeform that may be our cure. However the longer they wait, the most dangerous it is, especially for her mate's soul."

Kakashi frowned at him "from what I read of the books it's impossible for your males to have children outside their lifemates. How could you have an half-sister?"

The blonde explained about his great grandfather, his great grandmother and her lifemate and his father. Finally the silver haired scarecrow looked thoughtful, trying to digest it all.

"So your adopted father's grandmother was captured by an enemy who after killing her lifemate somehow kept her alive long enough to rape her and force her to conceive three children before he killed her too. He then proceeded to feed off their blood in an effort to sustain his own life before the two females were able to free their younger brother who escaped. HE fell in love and had kids, your father and his twin sister. The enemy then found and murdered their family-including their father and proceeded to use the twins instead, not only to develop strategies and....spells, but their blood. Through his actions your father freed his twin but became his prisoner. He was too weak to escape the enemies clutches, so 'The Aunts' initiated him into a full Carpathian. Somehow he ended up with four fragments of his grandfather inside him, controlling him to go around and seduce gifted women to conceive him more children to use. To this day, your father has no clue how many women he seduced and made pregnant." He took a deep breath "and to add to all that, his grandmother was a Dragonseeker, an old one."

The blonde nodded.

"So now you're a Dragonseeker by blood AND by heritage."

"If you are correct about the ancestry of my birth mother, it seems so" he looked at the silver haired  man "these books, did she allow you to see or read any of them?"

The silver haired nin looked embarrassed "well..."

"What?"

He closed his eye\eyes and sighed "at the time I was.....well it was just after my father...." The blonde's eyes narrowed as he caught a set of painful memories. Being looked at with suspicion, was he like his father? Anger at his only parental figure, a sense of betrayal and hurt.

He delved deeper, careful to keep the other unaware of his intrusion. Being taught that only the mission mattered, not them, not teammates, nothing else. Awed by his powerful father, hero worship. Then one day whispers, failure. He grit his teeth. The entire village rejected, ridiculed the man, all because he decided his teammates were more important.

On one hand as a hunter he understood. When it came to Hunting Vampires, getting the job done was more important than your own life. So many others could die if the evil wasn't stopped. On the other hand so was honor. If a Vampire was holding someone-human or Carpathian-hostage, the life was more important. However a hunter an male would find a way for both.

If this man valued his teammates over his mission, unless it was something incredibly important or life-threatening, he had his respect.

However despite what the silver haired was raised to be-a weapon-he was still a child. As the whispers grew, the looks, a child weapon raised to believe in the villages....righteousness began to believe them about his father being wrong, how he did something so traitorous.

Now that he knew better-the boy turned into a man and had done just what his father had-had been through what he had, he deeply regretted his actions and words towards his father. He took the words of his dead teammate to heart, even teaching it to his own team-including himself apparently who also took them to heart.

Too bad the other two didn't.

More memories surfaced. His team leader, a young man of blonde hair and blue eyes looking at him with a mixture of sadness and understanding, slowly shaking his head at him as he repeated the 'laws' he had been taught, that teammates weren't important to the mission and so on like a good brain-washed child he was-unemotionally.

He knew who this man was, his biological father. He studied the silver haired man's memories of him and found a person he was satisfied to call his  relation-although Razvan would always be the father of his blood and soul as he saw it.

 _"There is nothing wrong with having two fathers"_ the serene voice of the only father he knew said _"you can honor the man he is as well as myself. You CAN be Naruto Uzumaki as well as Naruto Dragonseeker."_

_"Trouble is I do not know who the other is and even if I did, I am not sure I wish to know....HIM."_

_ "Whatever happened to you in your past, no matter how painful or dramatic, merely makes you who you are now. Yes you have no memory of your past, but that does not mean you were anything to be ashamed of or scared. It made you the honorable young man we met that day, one who risked his life to save a child, one who hunted Vampires not because he wanted the thrill, but because it was the right thing to do, to protect and save others. You had power others could only  dream of, but you almost died protecting children, not revealing in it. The Healer once told me you had the heart of a Carpathian." _

This made him feel some relief and joy, the Greatest healer of the Carpathian and human races thought he had the soul of his people.

A sudden image made itself known from the silver haired scarecrow, a surface memory meaning he was currently thinking about it, almost as if HE was picking up HIS thoughts.

His younger blonde self, approaching him from the village gates where he stood, a sunny smile on his face for the man, another figure waiting just outside the gates.

The man waiting was tall and stocky, wearing green and red, a gold stud in one side of the nose, long white hair hanging in spikes down his back. He had long red lines diagonally down his face-over the cheeks and stopping just at the chin-that looked natural, like birthmarks, and carried an huge scroll hanging behind his back.

The man watched them solemnly, eyes on the boy, and for one unguarded moment seemed almost proud of him.

Knowledge of the man was easy to find, Jiriaya, Toad Sage, Sannin, writer of his beloved Icha Icha Paradise books. Pervert. However extremely skilled and could teach the boy a lot more than him.

And, if what the two told him was right, the Seals Master who had trained his biological father as well as trained his team. The man was old-as was his ex team, who was kept younger through nature energy, he could actually SEE that.

As the boy approached him with that disarming delighted smile he could pick up the man's feelings of the sight, the turmoil.

On one side he was proud, his 'student' had come so far from the stubborn idiotic child he was when they first met. Another was worried, worried about him being outside the village protection with this group looking for him-outside HIS protection. A third was filled with sorrow, this grinning teen was all he had left of his team, the other two having left him to learn from a sannin each. Now HE was also joining one to learn. The sannin taught his beloved sensei, how would HE surpass him also?

Another was jealousy, jealous of his opportunity to learn from him. But his student was in danger of his life, he NEEDED this training, this he quickly forced away, it wasn't the time or place and he wasn't going to....taint this parting. Who knew when he would see him again.

"Come to see me off, sensei?" the boy's grin showed delight and the affection of an student to his master.

"Yo" the man gave a casual wave when he felt anything but casual.

The boy's smile was gentle "I appreciate it, sensei, I know Baachan is busy as Hokage and Sakura has her shift at the Hospital and the others have missions...." he looked slightly sideways and the man followed his eyes to see a small figure hiding, quickly ducking back out of sight.

He smiled, his lifemate. His lifemate had also come to see him off, even though she lacked the courage to approach.

And by the small smile on his teen self's lips, he knew it as well and was thankful. He turned his head and murmured "when I come back, I'll do something for you both, to show you how much it means to me. But for now if I want to become Hokage I have to train, to become stronger."

His curiosity was peaked "you still want to become Hokage?"

The blonde cocked his head at him "of course" he said, as if the answer should be obvious "I want, no NEED to be able to protect my friends and those I see as family. Iruka-niisan, Baachan, HER, and that includes YOU sensei."

He felt the man's reaction to this, the sense of warmth at knowing that he was THAT important to him, the burst of fear that something would happen and he would loose him like so many others before him when he would not be there to protect or save him. Confusion, he was HIS job  to protect him as his sensei, not the other way around.

Before he could speak there was a noise and the moment was broken by the appearance of others, one he recognized as the dog-ninja Kiba, dragging  his faintly protesting lifemate with him.

Among them was the blonde woman 'Hokage' and the young man with his hair tied high behind him and a scar across his nose-the teacher Iruka. This man had special meaning to his past self. He looked at him. Kind but stern eyes, authority in his stance, but not that of say the blonde woman.

He looked at the blonde with such fondness and affection that he KNEW this man cared deeply for his past self.

Maybe he should go visit him.

He was his teacher in 'the academy', the first person to truly see his past self as other than a demon and become his friend.  HE was 'Iruka-niisan' and that last part of the title said it, niisan, big brother. To his past self this man was family, blood, and in the man's eyes he saw exactly the same thing.

Perhaps he could get to know him, maybe not as a brother, but a human friend.

Knowing he was off topic he went back to the more dormant memories. The blonde man again, smiling, a red headed woman behind him with her arms wrapped contently around his waist, head on his shoulder, watching them practice. By the slight smile on her face as she watched he knew she was happy there like that. The blonde man turned his head to smile at her, the two looking very much in love with each other.

Later she insisted the three of them join her and the blonde man for a picnic, when the other male of the group proclaimed loudly his disagreement he was bopped on the head by the woman before sitting down.

Every other memory of the two showed them very much in love with each other, just the way a Carpathian couple would. And the red headed woman took a special liking to his other teammate and while he tried to repress the jealousy he felt, deep down he admired-no, idolized-his sensei and his wife.

To him, it hurt. It felt like all his life he was seeing these happy families or couples together while he was stuck on the outside looking in. His mother had died when he was a baby and his father had been a skilled ninja, wanted for many missions and too busy for raising a child. Then he had failed a mission and sank into depression before killing himself.

He HAD idolized his father, yes in a way, he WAS his only parent, but the fact that the blonde man was THERE for him was different. It was like the difference between KNOWING you were supposed to do it and actually doing it.

He frowned. If the woman had paid special attention to his teammate, when did she show him these books? When did she tell him about her line?

It came after an particular outburst from the silver haired boy. His emotions all boiled up until one day during a 'spar' section when he almost killed the other boy. It hurt him, the look on his sensei's face at his actions, but it also fed the fire as well.

After a particularly LOUD outburst he stomped away towards his clan home, to be followed by the red head.

He glared at her but she decided to yell back, telling him he was selfish and cared only about himself, not that others around him might be suffering too. The shouting match ended up with her grabbing his arm and dragging him back to her apartment.

He was stuck following her.

If he lashed out at her in any way, he would upset his sensei. Not just that, Kushina-san was a fierce ninja herself. She may not be a high-level one like an jounnin or Sannin, but he had always had the impression it was by choice, not lack of talent.

Kushina-san simply did not like fighting or killing, despite her fierce temper. He snorted when he learned her nickname and that she had a habit of beating up anyone mean to her. 'Red Hot Habinero' indeed.

She was a warrior, but also a female Carpathian at heart like her ancestor, she reminded him a lot like his own mother. Another mother to be proud of. She was a gentle woman like others he had met, he saw that in the love she shared with the blonde, but also had the fierce determination of a Carpathian Hunter.

In a way she and his father were following her ancestry, they appeared to be lifemates. Perhaps the human blood hadn't been enough to dilute that part of their line, Dragonseekers were always a powerful breed.

He even noticed her eyes, her GREEN eyes. True they weren't the metallic green of his father's line, but perhaps it was enough of a sign.

Perhaps because of his Carpathian blood why he was so unique when human and now.

The woman dragged him into her apartment, pushed him into a chair at the dining room table and said firmly "stay there" and left the room.

He grumbled, one DID NOT say no to Kushina Uzumaki and get away without a few broken bones. He suspected the only reason they did was because they were Minato-san's team, no other reason.

He heard her moving things around the sounds of her searching for something. He was just thinking about leaving, damn the consequences, when her voice floated back "don't even think about it."

He raised a mental eyebrow. Did she predict he would try to leave, or did......was she in possession of an Carpathians ability to read minds?

Then of course it could be that she knew the boy well enough to know how his mind works. She HAD been coming to watch them being trained since the team was formed.

He grunted in disgust and crossed his arms over his chest, every bit the image of a stubborn child.

The next thing he knew a very old book was placed in front of him carefully on the table. He looked up at her but before he could complain she told him firmly to read it. He opened his mouth to protest but when he saw her eyes narrow he lowered them to look at the old cover.

Slowly he opened it and at first he only pretended to read it, but then words he didn't understand caught his eyes. Words like 'lifemate' and 'Karpatii' and 'Vampire'. He was a born genius, mind constantly seeking stimulation, knowledge, so this intrigued him.

Before he knew it he was engrossed in the pages, deeply, never looking up even when food was pushed to him, when his senses detected his sensei there and talking to the woman.

When the book was over he was not satisfied, he wanted to know more. He looked up to find it was dark and his sensei's wife sitting opposite him, watching.

"Well?" she asked "what do you think?" He tried to stay cool, unattached "it's an interesting work of fiction. Did you write it?"

"It's not fiction" she said calmly "it's real." He was startled "but..."

"The woman who wrote this was MY ancestor, the first Uzumaki. The origin of our clan. These are HER books written to her daughter, her diaries, so she would know who and what she was and came from."

Many thoughts whirred around his head. However when he opened his mouth to scoff, the young woman stood long enough to move her shirt just high enough to reveal a mark on her stomach, above her bellybutton.

A birthmark obviously but in the shape of a dragon. (A.N-I know Kushina was known for wearing dresses, but I think at home in the middle of the night she would go for a more comfortable t-shirt and pants.)

His eyes widened.

She went on "you are one of three only who know this. Myself and Minato-kun are the others, not even the Hokage knows" as she let the top drop back into place.

"But....why me?"

She sighed heavily "I know what it's like feeling like you're not a part of anything, on the outside looking in. I'm the jinchūriki of the nine-tailed, do you think that's all roses? There is a reason I concentrate most my attention on Obito, Kaka. You are so smart I know one day you'll surpass Minato-kun in everything...." she held her hand up to stop his protests "he knows it as well as I and deep down so do you, you have so much raw talent you only need to learn to use. However Obito needs help. He finds everything so difficult to do he hides his pain behind that goofball act. Did you know his own clan abuse him?"

Kakashi shook his head.

"They see him as an waste of space, a useless ninja. They haven't even taught him any clan jutsu's yet. Why else do you think he hasn't even unlocked the Sharingan yet? They won't tell him or even teach him. The only reason they haven't disowned him or thrown him out of the clan is because they think it will make them look bad for casting out a child! As soon as he's old enough and fails his first mission that's exactly what they intend to do!" Kakashi had seen his sensei's wife's temper before, but THIS was something new.

His mind was whirring "so you are trying to help him become someone better so he WILL succeed. You don't bother with me because I can do it myself."

"Yes and no" she said "I know you're just as..... damaged as he after what happened to your father, but Minato-kun can easily teach you everything you need to know. You pick up most things so easily. You could go so far on your own once you know how. But HE can't, no one wants to teach him except us and you've seen how he reacts to Minato-kun trying to. He needs for someone drill it into his head he's worth the effort, no matter what he's saying."

"So by giving me this book to read and letting me in on this secret you are showing me you DO believe in my worth to you both, that even though you are paying special attention to HIM, it doesn't mean I'm anything less to you."

She nodded.

"What did you mean by I pick up MOST things easily?"

She sighed heavily "you may be smart, a genus perhaps, but you continue to be stubborn in your beliefs about how a ninja should be. You could go so far with a flexible mind, but you restrict yourself by believing you are always right. That stubborn streak will get you into so much trouble down the line. Believing you can only rely on yourself and that the team isn't important can doom you. What do you think will happen when you abandon your teammates for the mission?"

He narrowed his eyes at her.

"Believe me, you'll be seen as worse than your father for it and NO ONE will want to go on missions with you. No ninja will ever trust you again. Neither will the village. And before you say it, ANY ninja who has had experience in battle let alone a mission KNOWS how important teamwork is let alone having each others back. Why else do you think you are chosen in teams and train in teams, not individually?"

When he went to speak, she did, three words "the Chunnin Exams."

"What?"

"The Chunnin Exams are supposed to prepare you for real life, real missions, yet what happens if you reach the end alone? Why so much empathize on team work? Yes, the last part is about showing individual strengths to others, but why does the REAL exams force you to fight other teams together instead of apart?"

He blinked at her.

She sighed heavily and gently took the book from him "when you're ready I'll be here. Until then, go home." He narrowed his eyes "I want to know more."

"What you want and what you're ready for are two different things, Kaka."

When his temper began to rise so did hers. Knowing his sensei's wife and her reputation he quickly backed down. He had no wish to be  beaten within an inch of his life.

So he left. He was determined, he WOULD read the rest of those books, even if he had to lie to her for it.

However life interfered-or rather war did.

The next time he saw anything of the young couple was in hospital where he sat much like he did now, one side of his face damaged and bandaged, his teammates sacrifice in his mind just as his....gift burned in his head.

He was tormented, the teachings in the Academy waring with his sensei's with his teammates last actions. Which was right? Why did he feel so conflicted? His teammate had just done what he was supposed to, right? Died so they could complete the mission. The sound of paper turning in the wind caught his attention though, turning quickly towards it (and cursing as he was immediately dizzy) only for him to find three old books beside the bed on the table, a sheet of paper in top.

Catching it up he read with his one good eye and it widened.

Gently and reverently he moved the bottom two books into the bottom of the cabinet by the table and then picked up the first of them with slightly shaking hands.

He continued to read even when his one uncovered eye began to hurt, the organ not used to taking the strain of working for both. He continued even when the nurses threatened to sedate him, only putting the books away long enough for them to leave.

The desire to know, to learn of this big secret burned inside him as nothing had before. He HAD to know about them, this ancestor and her race.

Naruto felt like he was reading over his shoulder as he read the man's mind of the memories of the words, finding nothing new than what he already knew or had experienced himself. What HE wasn't to know simply was the name of the female, or even her lifemates name might help. The silver haired human had been correct on the child's birth name-Yukari Dragonseeker, but as of yet the mother had not used her own name, or her lifemate's.

It suddenly occurred to him that it was possible that the male could have been the Dragonseeker and the female an converted human, it was entirely possible that the male was one of the ancients sent out over their world by their old Prince-Mikhail's father-to hunt the vampire centuries ago. Perhaps they found the portal, fought the vampire to keep it from the doorway, and the hunter was killed along with it, leaving the female behind. So she wandered through, either in her grieving or with the hopes of leaving their daughter with someone else to raise. Which explained why she didn't summon another Carpathian to take the baby to the Old Prince to raise, she didn't know others.

Although that didn't explain how she knew so much to put in the books.

He was about the draw out of his mind, resigned in the knowledge they would never know, when something caught his attention, a name, other than the daughters. Going back over it he looked carefully.

Aleesa Dragonseeker.

He blinked. Then blinked again. Then looked a third time. 'your parents-Aleesa Dragonseeker and Korbin Justicano.'

What? He came from BOTH Dragonseeker AND Justicano? His best friend was Byron, the last male Justicano, the other being his sister. Was he related to his friend? He HAD to know. He reached out on their shared mental path to his friend.

_"Byron?"_

The reply came back after a long pause _"Naru? What is it?"_ He couldn't help but smile at the concern in his friends voice. Byron Justicano had been the one to teach him jewelry making, the other Carpathian also a Jem Caller. He had learned so much from the other male, not just his gift, and his lifemate-a talented pianist and opera writer. The two of them quickly became friends and her family took him into their life as one of them.

Something, he learned, just wasn't done in the Scarletti line.

_"I am fine, my brother. First I have found my lifemate."_

_"I am glad, my friend."_ Another voice came in, feminine and musical _"you must bring her here, Naruto, so we may meet her."_

 _"The second is I have discovered some information that I need to confirm with you. If it's true it may mean not only am I descended from Carpathians but two different lines."_ Stunned silence then a cautious _"how can I help?"_

_"One of the names found was Korbin Justicano. Do you know this name or him."_

There was a long pause in what he could sense him thinking and conversing with his sister. Finally he came back with _"a great uncle. He and his lifemate died fighting vampires centuries ago. I don't remember him but sister says she met him once."_

He fought to repress a shiver of excitement and asked calmly _"What about his lifemate? Does she remember anything about her?"_

Again he referred with her _"It was an old revered line, she doesn't remember which."_   He blinked _"according to what I learned a pregnant female who lost her lifemate wandered into an portal between ours and another world and there gave birth to a daughter, Yukari. She left diaries behind for her daughter. That female and her lifemate were named as Aleesa Dragonseeker and Korbin Justicano."_

 _"That IS possible"_   his best friend said _"so your line came from that daughter of a true Dragonseeker. You must be pleased, it means you truly are a part of your families line."_

 _"And YOURS"_ he pointed out _"I am related to my father AND you now."_

 _"Yes"_ he sounded pleased _"we are brothers now. It also means you were born with Carpathian blood, meaning you may have been born human, but you are one of us-more so now."_

 _"Yes"_ he said with a smile _"I need you to also pass a message along to the Prince for me, since I have not shared blood with him. Tell him that this world contains many females capable of being lifemates. I have identified four as definite in my lifemates village alone. However this world is....not the sort of thing that I would wish for us to be associated normally with."_

 _"What is wrong with it?"_ Byron sounded concerned. _"These mortals have an ability called chakra, a unity of mind and spirit. With it they can do anything from hypnotize to create fire. However they use it as a weapon against each other. There are five major villages here and those born with this power are trained from the moment they can walk to fight and kill each other."_ He sensed Antonietta's absolute horror at this and Byron's fury. He went on _"and that is not all"_   he said.

_"What else?!"_

_"It appears this is where I came from originally."_ Byron paused _"Your home?"_

_"It seems so. Around ten years ago someone matching my description and power disappeared from here. His name was Naruto Uzumaki. The Uzumaki line was the descendants of that female Carpathian."_

_"How did you end up in our world?"_

_"From what we pieced together it was jealousy. The 'ninja' here are teamed up when they first start out. My....other self had the misfortune of being teamed with an obsessive fangirl and the stuck up arrogant object of said lust. When the arrogant ass left, joining an enemy seeking power, the fangirl became unhinged, trapped my other self to promising to try and return him back to the village, while convincing everyone around her of her normalcy._

_When he failed and left for training elsewhere, she seems to have fully become insane. After he returned she set up a trap. The end result was he....I was crippled by a blow to the spine and almost died. At some point I crawled away and entered the portal, ending up on the other side, our home."_

_"How did you survive, heal?"_

_"Apparently the day I was born an entity attacked the village I came from, one of nine and the most powerful of the lot. It was slaughtering villagers and those with charka-here called Shinobi-and the then leader used a seal, a type of safeguard, to forcibly pull the entity from it's body and separate it's spirit into two, one half he sealed inside me, the other himself before the price of the seal imprisoned his soul in something called the 'shirigami', in his stomach. This 'death god' apparently will be slowly digesting both his and the creatures spirit for eternity. My genetic mother AND father's last act was to sacrifice themselves to protect me from the creatures claw as the soul was extracted."_

_"How does that apply to your healing?"_

_"Apparently the creature was pure chakra and the seal allowed me to use small amounts of it's power, including healing. Later an enemy of this village tampered with the seal, allowing it to open more to the power. From what I learned it meant even though each time I used too much of it's power I caused damage to my body, it also meant I became for a short time inhuman in strength and power."_

_"And this thing allowed you to heal the damage?"_

_"That is unknown. No one, least of all me, seems to know if the creature was gone-extracted-at that point, or still remained. However......."_ he told his best friend about the discussion they had in those first days, plus everything else said on the subject afterwards.

_"You are right, I think we may never know for sure unless you were to remember."_

_"From what I have learned of this village and the abuse my past self suffered, I'm not sure that would be a good thing."_   However he bid his friend a farewell and came back to reality to find both figures staring at him "what is it?"

"You were silent for some time" Tsunade said, followed by Kakashi with "who were you talking to?"

"My best friend and brother-in-blood. It seems we are related now in more then just mind."

"What do you mean?" He was surprised when the blonde bowed to him in apology "I apologize for my behavior, Kakashi Hatake, I should have seeked permission first." The silverette looked confused "why?"

"I looked into your memories seeking the information we sought." The cyclops looked concerned and alarmed "what did you see?"

"I sought only the knowledge you gained from the books, nothing more. Rest assured, anything else is yours to keep." The silver haired scarecrow relaxed "thank you for respecting my privacy. Did you find what we needed?"

"I did indeed. Aleesa Dragonseeker and Korbin Justicano. Justicano is my best friends line-of which he and his sister are the last. I just confirmed with him the existence of a great uncle by that name."

"So you truly are of Dragonseeker ancestry, or at least half." Tsunade frowned "why is it so important he is one?"

Kakashi spoke, answering himself "the Dragonseeker's are a powerful and ancient line, lady Hokage, similar to the Uchiha. They were known as seerers, as powerful mages, and not one ever went vampire or betrayed their people. If his father's side has mage blood in him, he's all the more powerful now, especially since he was brought across by one AND has it in his ancestry. I don't know about the other line, but Hidden Leaf would benefit greatly from having a clan with his abilities located here." Tsunade frowned "what about any others?" she looked at Naruto "how many Dragonseeker's are there?"

"Pure blood there is one left, my Grand uncle Dominic. Half blood is my great aunts. THEY brought my father across even though he was only part. When they did he was full Carpathian. My father's twin was brought into HIS family by HER lifemate. Then there is my father's daughter's through possession."

"So not many of you left" the woman said softly, thoughtfully, only for Kakashi to interrupt her thoughts "may I remind you, Lady Hokage, that YOU share the same ancestry, as do many in Hidden Leaf."

The blonde froze "what do you mean?"

"Lady Hokage's grandmother was Uzumaki. And many families in Kohona have at one time or another had an Uzumaki in their line-our villages WERE allies" he pointed to the red whirl patch on his sleeve "this is THEIR symbol. Only the major clans have never.....introduced their bloodlines into them."

"That would explain all the compatible women in your village" he murmured "their blood must be stronger than the others." Kakashi nodded "I wouldn't be surprised, it would make them compatible with Carpathian men. Tell me, is TSUNADE-hime one of those? What about Shizune?" Naruto nodded "BOTH are" he looked at the other blonde "YOU are lit up so strongly it almost blinds me. Either your lifemate is near and your blood is reacting to it....."

"Or it's a sign her Uzumaki blood is dominant in her, at least right now" Kakashi finished. The blonde Carpathian nodded "where is this village located? I should go see them, they may have females we can find. Also I should see if they have knowledge of their ancestry." Both ninja exchanged looks. He narrowed his eyes "what is it?"

"The village no longer exists and there are only a few Uzumaki left scattered around the nations. As a clan they no longer exist."

His eyes narrowed and a dangerous aura surrounded him as he spoke slowly, evenly, giving the two the impression of clenched teeth "what happened?"

"The Uzumaki's were always known for their longer life-span, more vitality and skill with seals and creating them. Around the time of my grandfather a few of the villages began to fear them. They banded together and attacked them, destroying the village and almost wiping out the entire clan. By the time my grandfather found out and tried to help, it was too late. The only ones to survive were either on missions or out of the village at the time. Even now we have no idea who or how many are still alive."

"Where is the remains of their village located?"

"Why?"

"I wish to see it for myself. There may be clues there on Aleesa and her lifemate I can use in researching what happened."

"They are dead and even IF they are the origin of the Uzumaki line, what does it change now?"

"ALL Carpathians care for each other. We may have different familial lines, but our connection to each other through our prince makes us family, no matter where they came from. Besides, I'm sure my Grand uncle would like to know about his missing or unknown relative."

Kakashi spoke "I know where the village remains are. After Kushina-san let me read those journals I became obsessed with finding it. Minato-sensai got me assigned to a mission nearby so I could go there. After he became Hokage he gave me permission to spend a week of leave to go stay and fully explore. I found a few items I gave to Kushina-san but I can not only take you there, but show you where I found them."

His eyes narrowed "what sort of items? Where are they currently?"

"They LOOKED like simple trinkets, some small things like jewellery, but Minato probably locked them away in the clan-compound with everything else they owned that night. After Kushina-san got pregnant to him he insisted she move in with him into his clan compound out of her apartment because it's covered in protective seals and powerful jutsu's. It was one area the nine-tailed couldn't destroy that night, though he tried."

"So I would need to be acknowledged as the Namikaze heir to enter."

Kakashi shook his head "I don't know how that would work. The wards are keyed in to accept only those of your father's line. You are fully Dragonseeker now, even if you were able to enter before, NOW you are pure Uzumaki. I don't think Minato would have been able to key it to a pure blood since there is none of your line from before left."

Tsunade frowned, concerned "so the clan compound may be completely inaccessible to everyone now. Even if we announced Naruto's return and reinstated him as the last of both lines publicly, he can't claim the lands and property as his heritage" she looked thoughtful "I will summon Jiriaya back to look at these seals and wards, he taught Minato-bõ, he may know how to get around it."

Naruto spoke himself, looking at Kakashi "can YOU enter?" The scarecrow looked thoughtful "I could when they were alive, I have no idea if I can anymore. We COULD try...."

"Not now" Naruto said "you need to recover your health and I need to take care of this issue with my lifemates clan. I promised my lifemate I would NOT control her clan's minds or force their compliance in that way, but this has gone on long enough. There will be no more delays in our joining in the human way."

"Just don't kill anyone" Tsunade growled "and on my end I'll get you reinstated as Naruto UzumakiNamikaze and your heritage, including all scrolls and money."

"If you wish" he seemed amused by this "at least my lifemate will be able to make use of the scrolls." Tsunade looked alarmed "you are going to give scrolls on Namikaze family jutsu's to an Hyuuga!" His look at her made her back up a little in defense "what use are they to me? I can not use chakra so they do not matter. And in case you forgot, human, she is my lifemate and in your eyes married to me, meaning entitled to everything I have and more."

"He has a point, Lady Hokage" Kakashi said "and she will need to know any of them so someone can teach their kids-if she was to conceive before he brings her across. If he doesn't wait someone else will have to teach them these things."

"Just....don't give them too anyone else then. The Hyuuga's are arrogant enough, they don't need the forth and the last Uzumaki's jutsu's in their arsenal as well."

"May I remind you that anything learned or heard under YOUR command supersedes clan law" the other blonde grunted "as in the case of mission information or things learned from the Hokage his or herself. If you were to give these jutsu's to my lifemates cousin and tell him to learn them so he can train our children-not that I plan on MY offspring being turned into your weapons-then anything he reads or learns through them CAN NOT be taught to any of their clan. It is an member-specified order and jutsu. Legally the Hyuuga can not force him to teach or reveal it to another. If they try they are breaking a law of the Hokage AND village and are therefore open to YOUR punishment."

She blinked at him "how do you know that? I didn't even know that!" He blinked back "I studied all I could find on your village and IN your village. Those laws are in your library for all to read." The woman sweat-dropped. "I have to constantly remind myself you are NOT the Naruto we knew. He would never have been caught studying unless Iruka bribed him. Even then he would have found some way to get out of it" she muttered.

"It seemed it was only the reading he had trouble with" Kakashi said "he had no trouble learning new things. He was constantly bugging all us adults to learn new things, be it jutsu or 'a cool new move'. Half the reason he went with Jiriaya-sama was not his own protection but to learn the Rasegan."

"Rasegan?"

"An level A rank wind attack which involves compressing air into a tight circular motion with all the destructive power of a tornado" Tsunade said "essentially an twister the size and shape of a small ball."

"Sounds fascinating, and did he teach......me this?"

"I never saw it since Naruto went on THAT  mission not long after returning, but Jariaya claimed he did and apparently he was boasting about it to his fellow ex-classmates."

Kakashi raised one hand and something baseball sized and shaped appeared on his palm, spinning madly "I had enough time to copy it with the sharingan before he left."

The blonde studied it for a second then raised his own hand with an identical item in it, only larger-about the size of an cantaloupe. They goggled at it as the one in the cyclops' hand dispersed. "How did you.....?"

  
"I thought you didn't remember!"

He snorted "I am a child of Mother Nature as well as a Carpathian. Controlling all six elements is no trouble. Tell me, if we can command storms and lightening, why would this be any difference?"

"He's right" Kakashi said "Think about it, storms would be a combination of wind, water, fire AND lightening."

"How do you figure? Fire? Wind?"

"In order to create clouds you need superheated water. Wind to manipulate the clouds and lightening to energize the entire thing." She hesitated then nodded. Then something occurred to her and she looked at him "FIVE elements? What is the sixth?" Kakashi had caught that as well "wind, water, fire,  Earth and lightening-or electricity. There is a sixth?" His eyes suddenly widened "do you mean....NATURE? Like with chakra energy and the sages?"

He cocked his head at him "all five of those elements are part of nature energy. What makes you think the last is that?" They hesitated then nodded "so what IS the sixth element?" He grinned, startling them and reminding them of his previous personality. It also warmed them, knowing the boy they all loved or deeply cared for was still there. Before they could speak he had suddenly cocked his head and seemed to be listening to something. They waited for him to come out of it before asking him "what is it?"

"A message from my friend Byron, he is the last male Justicano. I asked him to report to the Prince on the going on here and the fact a lot of your women are lifemates."

"And?"

"The Prince is pleased I found my lifemate and that I have located AT LEAST five other women for our males. He is interested in coming here to form an alliance, however we can not risk him."

"What do you mean?"

"If the gate should close while he is here it would cut us off from him. This would devastate and kill our race. Added to this it would give the Vampires an opportunity to try and kill him. Lately the prince has had to be hidden as the Vampires seem more than a little desperate to kill him, sacrificing everything just for a shot at him. Normally Gregori his second-in-command and son-in-law would take his place, but he has the twins to worry about. He is our people's greatest healer, to loose him would be just as bad as loosing the prince. The princes brother is also unable-with his lifemate and son, being as he is."

"What do you mean by that?"

"The princes brother was betrayed by one of us-who had turned vampire. He injured him and then gave him to humans to be tortured. Even now he has....difficulty around large groups." They understood this. Ninja didn't exactly have an easy time and many ended up traumatized by their life, either 'retired', burnt out, or dying in battle. The lucky few who missed the really....bad missions could never truly appreciate what they had, how lucky they were.

BOTH ninja had lived through war and loosing those they cared for, they could understand being unable to be around others-especially strangers.

"So who did they decide on to send?"

"That is what they are organizing now. My sister and brother-in-law volunteered, but father and mother denied them, so did one of the grand aunts, but her knowledge on Xavier and his brothers is needed there" he cocked his head then looked at them "it seems that both Gary Jansen and Josef are speaking to the prince now. Both are unmated males, Gary was a human male close friend of the healer and turned to save his life, he  is now part of the healers family. Josef is, in a way, my nephew."

"Nephew?"

He nodded "his mother when he was born was unable to handle the world outside her head and so my brother-kin Byron's sister took him in with her lifemate and raised him. Byron and I have been like brothers since we met, even his lifemates family accepted me, which I am told never happens with them and outsiders. Her clan is very powerful, they have money, influence and an powerful lineage.

Byron is a Gem Caller like me-he trained me-and can make jewellery sought by celebrities, politicians, rich people and the like. His lifemate Antonia is an pianist in high demand for her talent around the world. Vlad, Josef's adopted father and Byron's sisters lifemate is a well-known and sought after sculptor.

They have another son together, but I think Josef hopes to find his lifemate here."

"So this Byron and his sister are the last of the Justicano line, the.....husband of the woman who started the Uzumaki line with their daughter. The other half is your fathers, Dragonseeker."

He nodded.

"The other volunteer is an man once human but turned into a Carpathian after the healer of your race turned him to save his life since they were friends-now he's part of their clan." He nodded again. "And these two unmated males are volunteering to be the emissaries here from your prince."

"Correct. Both are unmated males, it is possible their mates are here, among the females of this village. It is possible they are somewhere else, another village perhaps." The blonde woman frowned at this "if the lifemate of an Carpathian male is in another village, what happens? Will he fight against us or other villages for them?" He shook his head "No, he would stay out of it. If you were trying to invade them or threatened him or his own, that would be another matter."

"Tsunade-sama I have an theory" Shizune spoke out, looking thoughtful "I don't think another village would apply." They looked at her "why?"

"Bloodlines." Tsunade frowned at her "what about them?"

"Hidden Leaf not only has Uzumaki blood throughout it, it also has the most clans with bloodline abilities since the massacre of them many years ago. What if bloodline abilities were the result of Uzumaki blood being closer to the original-or even the result of Carpathian blood mixed with the chakra of a ninja? We don't know exactly how long ago the girl and her ninja mate was" she looked at Naruto "you said your kind were children until they reached 250. Is it possible the child brought her mate across then, but before then their children were gifted?"

He thought about it "if the daughter was born here, the earth here is clean of all contamination by the Mage, 250 years of untainted earth may have ensured the females children-half-breed or not-survived, leading to multiple children while she and her lifemate lived. Those children could have moved on themselves to various places around the land over time, leading to breeding with particularly strong genes with ninja which, logically, lead to what you call bloodlines."

Kakashi's eyes widened "so you're saying you think our bloodline abilities are because they are also descended from this child, only an indirect line unlike the Uzumaki. That the massacre of both those with bloodlines and the Uzumaki could be connected. Perhaps someone in the Elemental nations knows about this-or at least suspects something and did something to try and completely wipe them out? It could be that since Hidden Leaf accepts and welcomes bloodlines and the Uzumaki, they haven't been able to fully wipe them out." Something suddenly occurred to him and his one visible eye widened on his leader "hokage?!"

She nodded "I just thought of that as well. It explains a few things if it's true."

Shizune looked confused "lady Tsunade?"

The blonde woman turned on her "it explains so much, just think about it. The sudden massacre of Whirlpool and it's people, the hunt down of those with Bloodlines, even the murder of our ninja with such abilities on missions!" The other woman's eyes widened but she was going on "there is also Fugaku's sudden belief in their superiority and right to rule and the planned coup! If that civil war happened then many in Hidden Leaf would be murdered, both Uchiha AND others in the village. And not many know that we found records in the Uchiha clan grounds that their first targets were those with bloodlines, including Naruto himself!"

Shizune looked stunned "so the Uchiha are responsible for the decimation of the bloodlines?"

"No, I'm saying someone manipulated them into wiping themselves out. Whether it was through civil war or what actually happened, another bloodline is almost gone."

"Wait" Kakashi said "sensei said something to me the night of the Kyuubi's attack, about a man in an mask. He said he had only one eye visible and the mask was a white spiral. He said he took Naruto from him and threatened to kill him if he didn't let him take the nine tailed. He said that night was his fault and he was going to 'save' us all. What if the entire point of the foxes attack was just that, murder as many bloodlines in the village as possible."

"This awakens the thought of an possible explanation" Naruto said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully "if someone here knows of Carpathians and lifemates and the history of the the Uzumaki, perhaps through these diaries, they may be working to destroy any chance of lifemates being born or conceived. This is something an Vampire would conceive of. Or even a so-called Vampire Hunter."

Tsunade looked alarmed "how could a Vampire be here?!" He continued looking thoughtful "if this started before the night of my birth, before the bloodline massacres, it didn't come though the portal when I did, meaning it was either with or followed the female when SHE arrived, or....."

"Or?"

"He also is a descendant of the female, who turned." Stunned silence for a few seconds before Kakashi breathed what they all were thinking "a Vampire Uzumaki."

He nodded "it is entirely possible he has no idea what is happening on the other side of the portal, so has nothing to do with my so-called uncles and the Xavier triplets plots. It many be that he is acting out of paranoia, killing off the bloodlines to destroy potential mates, just in case another is born who becomes Carpathian. If there is no more in the line and no potential mates for them, there is no one to stop and destroy him."

"Like you" Tsunade said and he nodded "I have faced and destroyed Vampires before, I would definitely be a threat to him-if I was aware of him."

Tsunade frowned "in a round about way, his actions actually ensured another who could destroy him, think about it. If it wasn't for the nine-tailed being sealed in you that night, you probably would have grown up normal, no knowledge of the portal, a normal ninja and probably thinking those diaries were just stories or legends."

"I think you are right" he looked disturbed, like the thought of never becoming what he was scared him.

When Kakashi's head started to droop, Tsunade straightened "it is time you went back to sleep, you still have a lot of rest needed if you want to renew your chakra" she motioned the other blonde and her student to leave with her, frowning at Naruto "we still have a lot to discuss, you have an clan to see about your lifemate and a Vampire to find."

The two nodded and started to leave with her when the silver cyclops called out to him "WAIT!" When he stopped and looked back the man sighed softly "when you can, come back and see me. I....I want to get to know the new you."

He hesitated then nodded before all three were gone.


	11. 11

His knock on the door to the compound was answered, by someone he DIDN'T expect. The white eyed figure looked at him expressionless for a few seconds before he nodded and moved aside "I've been waiting for you. This way."

Lead by his lifemates cousin, he entered the hall, politely closing the door behind him. As they walked he frowned at the young man. Something wasn't right. He sensed the figures feelings and hidden emotions more so now he was up close and not distracted like the first time and they all pointed to a loving cousin, someone who had loved her for a long time, not the last few years.

This was the pure intense love of a child-turned man, a 'big' protective brother, not what he expected. These told him the young man had always loved his cousin, NOT recently.

If so, if he had never hated his cousin, why the act?

His confusion and concern was further increased when he was in the room with his lifemates father. He sensed sorrow, guilt and a deep concern for her, NOT that of an strict man pushing his eldest to improve-unsatisfied with her seemingly weak behavior.

The guilt and grief seemed to be towards his daughter, in such a way he KNEW he regretted his actions towards her, yet for some reason he did them.

He frowned, watching the man's back as he stared out the window. Reaching out with his mind he did just what he had done with the silver haired male earlier that day, he searched his mind.

He was almost swamped-with the intensity of the  emotions of the human in front of him. Overwhelming love, sorrow, hurt, anguish, fear, betrayal, determination and an all-consuming protectiveness.

This was a man, a man who loved his daughters, more than anything else in the world, more than his own life, yet why did he treat her the way he had if he hated it so much? He could feel it, the man despised himself, not because of her 'weak' behavior or inability to become an heartless weapon, but what he was doing to her, what he HAD been doing to her all these years.

It was utmost in his mind, he truly and utterly loved his eldest, unconditionally and all-consuming, she was his child, the last piece of his beloved wife, almost a clone-both in looks and temperament-of the one woman that made his life bearable. It filled him with self-loathing and pain to treat her this way.

Yes, he had another daughter, a younger daughter, but SHE was cold and abrasive, every bit the clan's weapon for village she was raised to be. No, his eldest was his wife's child, HER face, HER body, HER soul and HER eyes.

His love for her was overwhelming, almost causing his own mind to buckle under the blow of the intensity, only by disconnecting his mind did he save himself from the madness that it surely would have caused him.

However he was unable to block his lifemate from sharing the truth and he sensed her gasp, her own mind filled with mixed emotions. Hope, joy, love, confusion, an intense need to comfort the man and return his feelings to him....."but.... why?"

"I do not know, jela lamti. But I intend to find out."  He hesitated before adding "however his feeling are shared by your cousin. My scans of him finding this is not recent either."

She seemed even more shocked and confused "Neji.....doesn't hate me?"

"No, jela lamti. Both your cousin AND your father love you more than you can imagine. They always have." He grit his teeth against the beast, rising in fury at his lifemate's next words, sobbed into his mind in such a broken little voice "then why?"

"I WILL find out, lifemate, be assured of that"  his mental voice was firm and no-nonsense.

Before he could speak again there was a visible change in the man in front of him. He drew himself up, hardening both body and mind as he began to turn, speaking as he did "I was informed you wish to seek my daughter's hand in marriage." As he finished turning he stepped further in the room where the older man could see him.

The man looked startled, eyes widening fractionally "Naruto?! Naruto Uzumaki?!"

"It is Naruto Dragonseeker\Uzumaki\Namikaze now, Haishi-san." The man's eyes widened even more at this "what happened to you?!"

"I awakened my heritage, not JUST of both my parents, but the truth of the Uzumaki line."

"The truth of the Uzumaki line" the man was stunned, but there was SOMETHING in his voice...  
Naruto's eyes narrowed dangerously on him "you know something, do you not? Something of what I am talking about."

The man sighed and sat abruptly in the chair behind the desk, running one of his hands over his face. He gave Naruto the feeling that he WANTED to tell him, but couldn't.

Probing the mans mind gently he was startled by the feel of something....not human inside him, at least not completely. It rested there, just behind his eyes. His lifemate and her cousin shared this, but in a minor way-so he had assumed it was part of their ability. However here it was in startling clarity and strength.

He KNEW this power, he shared it.

If what he sensed was true then it meant things were further complicated than he thought. The Hokage had told him the Uzumaki line had bred with multiple families in Hidden Leaf, leading to the gifted women, however the major clans HAD NOT, afraid to 'taint' a pure bloodline. Yet for some reason THIS clan separated itself into two, one side treated like slaves.

Or impure blood.

Something inside him stilled, on the verge of something. He had scanned the others when he first entered the grounds. Those of the 'pure' line didn't have this mark like the man, his eldest daughter and nephew, not even the youngest female did. However most of the other side did. Some stronger than the others but not as strong as the clan leader. If the nephew had it, Naruto reasoned that his dead twin must have had it also.

He had no idea if the twin was as strong in the blood and mark as his brother, but IF the other 'branch' of the clan were all either the same or close it MIGHT explain WHY they were treated as they were. They were not 'pure bloods', they had at some time in their line, bred with an Uzumaki, or someone with SOME blood in them.

But unknown to the 'pure branch', somehow their own line had ended up also 'contaminated.' If the heir and clan head was any indication, it was recent to, grandfather or even father, no further than that, the mark and blood was too strong to be anything else.

It explained how his lifemate, an supposedly pure blooded clan member, could be compatible with him when their lines selective 'breeding' should have prevented it. He wouldn't be surprised if other female members of her cousins side were also compatible with their males.

He sensed his lifemate still inside at the information. It was like a revelation to her, she never even CONSIDERED there was a reason behind the alienation of her cousins side. However she still didn't care about 'pure blood' or 'tainted'. She WANTED, and NEEDED her family to be one.

"Besides" she thought to him "now were are the same-however distant or close I am."

"It also means you are compatible"  he said "you have Uzumaki blood-Carpathian blood-in your line, you are capable of taking to the change. Your fathers mark-his very blood-bares traces of us. That would only happen if it was close to him. I would say your grandfather or mother or great grandfather or mother. What do you know of them?"

She hesitated, thinking. Finally she spoke "not much, they were all dead before I was born. However there WAS an incident I remember when I was very young. Father outvoted one of the elder council members on something-I don't remember what. I heard them arguing later. The man told father he was 'forgetting his place' in the council and that he was there on their discretion only. Father told him he was stepping out of line, that HE was the clan head, not the council member and talking to him like that was treason and that if he continued he would find himself among those of the branch members he hated so much as one of them.

HE got this....cruel tone and told father if that happened he may not be able to stop himself from revealing grandfather's.....indiscretion. I  don't know much about Ryoshi-san, but father loved him utterly and idolized him. Mother once told me when I was little that so did uncle Haizihi-san."

"So you have no idea which was Uzumaki?" She paused, thinking "ask father about his mother."

He pulled back his attention to the man, obviously trying to come to terms with what he MUST reveal. Naruto narrowed his eyes and spoke into his mind. "You are afraid of this information getting into the hands of certain clan members."

The man froze, looking up at him in shock and horror, however NOT at the ability but he had read it from him so easily.

"You do not need to speak, I will hear anything the think at me through our bond."

"What bond?"  the question was tentative and uncertain.

"Your daughter is my lifemate, we have a bond shared through blood we have already shared. As her father your blood is similar enough for me to be able follow that path to your mind. AS her father you are family to me also and under the protection of myself, MY family and my people."  He made a motion and something in the room shifted.

"What did you just do?"

"You were afraid of devices and others seeing and hearing what we are about discuss. I provided and illusion of an serious conversation between us both while protecting us in an 'bubble' as it were. The only ones who will know or hear our conversation will be those here."

He sighed "the Byukagen....."

"Will see only what I wish. The illusion is complete in every way."

The man frowned in suspicion "how can you provide an illusion perfect enough to fool devices AND our bloodline?"

He motioned the question away"when your job is to hunt those of the most vilest of evil, you learn a trick or two. That is not important right now. Tell me of your parents, your mother in particular."

He looked at him incredulously "how do you...." he sighed heavily "never-mind that."  He sat back in the chair, head back and eyes closed as he tried to gather his thoughts enough to explain. Finally he was able to speak in his mind.

"Our father was clan head and pure blooded Hyuuga, our mother was not."  Ignoring his lifemate's gasp, he asked gently, his voice soothing and compelling an answer "who was she?"

The man looked at him sharply "don't you mean what?" He grinned at the man "alright, if that is your wish. WHAT was she?"

"I don't know, neither did father. However they were in love, more than that, that word didn't begin to describe their relationship. He loved her so much when she died he was a mere shell of a man."

Naruto frowned, it sounded like the relationship between lifemate's, was it possible? "Tell me about her." The males head wobbled from side to side "I can't."

Naruto's eyes narrowed dangerously"why not?"

"I NEVER knew her, she was murdered the night we were born. When I said my father was a shell of a man afterwards I mean I never knew him before. He did his duty as clan head, raised us and married our....clan mother like was expected of him, but he did it all without emotion. The only time he seemed to have any life in him was the bedtime stories he told us of a night about HER."

"Tell me what he told you both about her."

He was quiet at first, then began "the day they met father had stormed out of the clan grounds in a temper after being informed of his 'obligation' to give the clans an heir, in other words-the council had organized an marriage for him with a strong 'genetically equal' female. As a way to thumb his nose at the elders he decided to go off to the local brothel and sleep with as many women as possible.

Father wasn't afraid to admit he frequent places like that, when you were a ninja it sometimes was the only way to relieve the stress, and he had favorites. He had a jutsu he used to ensure he was never fertile, so there was never bastard children. Once there he was more than annoyed to learn his favorite was gone, but he also learned there was another, a new one who was quickly becoming the most popular."

"She was a prostitute?"

The man glared at him "she wasn't truly one. She never slept with her 'clients'. She would take what she needed and leave the men with false memories. She was hiding there from someone, father never knew who or why."

He made an dismissive motion "I was only clarifying, not judging."

The clan head's sigh was world-weary and he continued "from the moment they met, they were drawn to each other, it was as if they couldn't be apart. The longer they were apart, the worse it was."

"I gather your father forgot to use the.....jutsu to prevent fertility at some point?"

He nodded "our mother was pregnant to us and was able to hide it. Since she never actually 'slept' with the men coming to her that wasn't a problem. Father begged her to come with him, to become his wife and join the clan, but she told him she couldn't risk it-or him. Whomever was chasing her-hunting her-was more dangerous than anything he knew and if it found out about him, it wouldn't hesitate to kill him."

Naruto frowned mentally, this was beginning to sound more like a vampire was here. If his lifemate's grandmother was Uzumaki and had somehow awakened her heritage-perhaps by being born without chakra or being genetically unique-then chances were she encountered him at some point. The vampire would have pursued her, thinking as the only female of his kind she would belong to him.

So she ran from him, probably learning to hide her presence from him. Not knowing how long she was running he theorized she realized the only place she could hide would be where she was.

Female Carpathians shied away from the touch of a male other than their lifemate's, she would have thought hiding there would be somewhere the evil being would never look.

By using her abilities she was able to 'sleep' with her clients by laying false memories, also allowing her a blood-source without problem.

That was until she met the man who was supposed to be her lifemate.

Since only a few true Carpathians were obviously being born inside the Uzumaki line, fate had stepped in with her mate-only human. While it was possible she could have converted him, she perhaps didn't KNOW she could-or she didn't have time.

Or as head of an such broken clan, she didn't want to risk her mate's life. With the level of paranoia, disgust and hate in this 'family', anyone finding out could have either used it against him, or believed he became inhuman and killed him when he was vulnerable.

"What happened to her? You mentioned her being  killed the night you and your twin were born."

The clan head's face twisted in pain and he nodded "Sometimes when I sleep and am not focused I get flashes. Pain not my own, a woman's scream ardor crying brokenly.  When she cries I want to as well and it hurts me each time it happens, deep down inside-like her crying means something important is missing-from ME and someone else. Sometimes I think I'm imagining it, or at least wishing I could have shared something more than genetics with her. Father told us he was on a diplomatic mission to another village when he felt a sense of foreboding and fear. At first he thought-as a ninja-it was just him in another village of potential enemies, but then it became terror, agony and pain. By the time he realized the truth it was too late.

He found our mother in her room, ripped to shreds and no sign of us. The other women said one of her clients wanted her to marry him, but when she refused he flew into a rage, but father knew different, he KNEW whatever was hunting her had finally caught up and ended her life. He had no idea what happened to us, if we lived or were also dead somewhere, and having hidden our existence from everyone but themselves he couldn't reveal it either, especially when ALL her other clients would say she was definitely NOT pregnant when they visited her.

He was forced to return here, unable to figure out how to reveal our existence and at the same time hide us from the evil who killed her.

However when he returned he found our clan-mother-his arranged bride-with us and a message from his love. Apparently she had given birth just after he left on the mission and when she sensed the evil approach she had taken us to our 'mother' and used her ability to not only program her into the belief that we were hers but left a message for him through her she would never remember. All our lives she believed we were hers and vehemently defended this belief. Even when others found out about our true mother."

"How did she explain her husband sleeping with another woman?"

"She claimed the two of them had a pact. He would come visit-supposedly to sleep with her-but instead the two of them would meet up to have a secret romance. Our true mother was the disguise they used. She was being paid to play the part of the hooker he was sleeping with in order to hide their secret. When others questioned why he was so broken and tormented when he found her dead she explained he THOUGHT it was her, and yes, she had been pregnant, it was why she had locked herself away in her room the last few months in an guise of a temper that he wouldn't marry her, to hide her belly."

"And they believed her?"

The man grimaced "father's wife could be VERY convincing when she wished, and they had no proof. When they interviewed those that worked at the brothel, everything they said just corroborated their story. When father spoke to them later about it, they ALL said they loved her and it wouldn't be right for the man she loved to suffer. One girl said she owed her her life, even the matron said she was an hard worker and never argued."

"What do you mean by 'saved her life'?"

"When one of the girls was beaten almost to death by a client, mother healed her. She would heal everyone there of wounds or injuries. The girls loved here and what she did for them. Some days when they couldn't make their quoter, she would give them some of her funds to help. Going  along with father and his 'wife' was-they felt-the least they could do."

"Tell me about your twin. Did you feel it when he died?"

"Yes and no" he looked at him intently "I never knew what he was planning that day. I was prepared to take my punishment for my daughter's life, but HE had always protected me as the older of us. I didn't want to be clan head, HE would have been so much better at it, but HE insisted I was more suited to it. The day he died I felt a heaviness then a slow void gathering in my head. I tried to get there before but he was gone. He was gone. I later found out they had poisoned him, he had...just fallen asleep and died. I found a letter later from him stating that I was his twin, it was his job to protect me. I was the clan head and had two daughters-one newly born-I was too important to sacrifice." He looked conflicted "but so was he. He had a son."

Naruto nodded, to him it sounded definitely like the actions of an Carpathian male. Despite these two being only half, the eldest twin had acted as one, protecting his twin with his life as a hunter would do in battle.

They may not BE Carpathians, but the two shared the blood. It seemed their human blood repressed their Carpathian just enough to prevent most aspects, however in many ways they had the personalities and in-born sense of honor. However  it brought up the question....."why the acts of seeming abuse by you and your nephew on your eldest-my lifemate-and not your youngest."

The man stared at him "what makes you sure they were acts?" to which he snorted "I am Carpathian, even WITH your shared blood with our kind, I can read your minds. How else do you think we can commune like this? I read both yours and your nephew's and could FEEL the sadness and guilt of the act. Which means, if you both truly do not hate her but love her, why the act?"

The clan head glared at him, but when he only looked amused at the attempt he eventually sighed and explained "it's for her own safety."

"How so?"

"When Neji was old enough to understand I gave him the scroll left by his father explaining his choice and reasons for taking my place. He left it to me the day he...died and entrusted me to give it to me when his son was old enough. That afternoon Neji came to me and told me as far as he was concerned Hinata was HIS little sister and he'd do ANYTHING to protect her."

"How old was he then?"

"Only five."

"And what happened?"

"When he was six he came to me in tears. Apparently some members of the branch had confronted him, told him if he REALLY cared for his father he'd join them in their plans. HE was the son of the TRUE head, and as such HE was supposed to be the next Clan Head. That I had stolen it from his father."

Naruto's eyes narrowed "plans?"

"They were going to kill the main branch, us. With the curse seal in place they couldn't let them act back, so it was to be a surprise attack with all of them acting at union, not allowing ANY of the main members time to strike back in any way. As  the son of my brother and also a member of the branch family, despite his obvious closeness to my eldest, they felt he was one of them and when told how I 'forced' my brother in my place they could manipulate him to their own ends with promises of being the new clan head. Their plan was to get close to certain branch members by acting the part of submissive slaves to them, then when the signal went out, turning on them."

"I see. And your nephew was to be close to you."

"No" he said bluntly "my daughter."

The blonde Carpathian froze completely still and the clan head was reminded of a great jungle cat about to pounce-or a wolf. "Excuse me?"

"It was to be their signal. My nephew was to murder my eldest daughter and in the confusion of the act the rest would make their move."

Slowly and almost....painfully the figure sat back in his chair "I see. So you have been pushing your daughter to become something she is not in the hope she will be skilled enough to fight back when the time comes-to kill to defend herself."

"No" he said again"she is too pure, too much like her mother. Despite being a ninja my Hinata has NEVER killed. I know because she is still as pure as the day she entered the academy. There is a reason why they were appointed the scout team. If and WHEN the branch members attack, she could not kill any of them, I doubt she could even raise a hand against them. I know she dreams of ending the caged bird seal and uniting the families into one but I'm afraid it's just not possible. Half the branch family are either stuck in their ways or hate the main too much. Half the main-including the council of elders themselves-are so far gone in the belief that they are superior they would either refuse to accept freeing the others, or continue to treat them the same way." He shook his head "it is too late."

In his head he heard his lifemate sob softly at these words, her heart breaking at the thought she couldn't save her clan. Fury filled him and he was forced to clench his teeth at the instinctive reaction to his lifemate's pain. So he gathered her up in his arms mentally and held her to him.

The clan head was right, especially about his mate. She was too good, too pure to have ever killed. The fact the three together were chosen to be a scouting group showed the leaders intelligent thinking. With his lifemate's eyes, the Inuzuka's higher senses and animal partner and the Abrahume's insects, they would be a valuable team to any mission. Her inability to kill just marked her as a true lifemate. And IF her father's mother was Carpathian-an Uzumaki\Dragonseeker that made her 1/3rd Carpathian. Definitely compatible and his lifemate.

It also made her cousin one.

It explained both the fierce desire to protect his cousin when he was young and the overwhelming sense of guilt and grief at treating her so badly. He had the soul of a true male Carpathian.

He sat back in the chair "so, your nephew was to be your spy among the branch. The entire reason for the abuse was to win their trust so he could learn the plans of the rebellion. Including when."

"Yes and no. It was a big part of it, but the council was also a big piece. They couldn't accept their clan heir could not kill, they refused to accept a Hyuuga would be unable to become the weapon they wanted. Pushing her so much was the only way I could protect her. I couldn't tell the council about the rebellion either, they would take the opportunity to torture the entire branch family in the guise of finding those responsible, which would just turn the rest on us."

"Has all this worked? Do you even KNOW when it is planned?"

"We have managed to....postpone it twice so far. Twice they planned to move against my daughter, but we were able to prevent it, NEJI prevented it."

He felt his lifemate still in his mind, tears and sobbing halted in her shock. Her cousin had saved her life twice without her knowing it? "When?"

He repeated his woman's question to her father.

"Once during her early teens. During the preliminaries of the Chunin exams. They had a member in disguise as a member of another team who was supposed to fight and kill her at the final stage. My daughter-despite her pure heart-is powerful and would have won, especially with you there cheering her on. By manipulating the lottery Neji was to be the one instead. By fighting and beating her instead he ensured she stayed out of the running."

He shrugged "The invasion of Sand village did the same thing, but there was always a chance HER fight would have happened before that."

"And the second?"

"On a mission. However again Neji was there. The member attempted to assassinate her in her sleep but Neji stopped him by an kunai to the throat without knowledge of anyone else. He then disguised the body to look like he was killed by an animal attack while leaving the village. Since he had no permission to leave the village at the time he was seen as an traitor and disposed of. The council saw it as such but because he was such a weak member, the branch saw it as a failure for sending a weak member somewhere he would never survive."

"They never found traces of him in their camp or tracking you daughter?"

He shook his head "Neji is far more skilled than anyone realized. When he was young he received additional training on tracking and removing traces, animal behavior and stealth from an ANBU and Hunter-nin couple I knew in my youth as well as acting from one of the ladies father knew at the brothel who now lives a peaceful life as an kindly elderly lady. As far as the branch family know he is receiving training to become the next clan head from Yuki and Taro san and helping out old lady Sato-san in her garden."

He looked at the blonde other "Sato-san was more than willing to help when I approached her. She knew my father and loved my mother and wished to help in any way possible. She said helping Neji protect my daughter was a noble mission and it was the least she could do to repay mother for what she did for her."

Naruto looked at him, expression blank "the woman beaten by her client whom almost died. She wished to repay her debt to you."

"Exactly" the man nodded "a lot of people underestimate those women who sleep with men for money. They think they are stupid or lazy, that they just use their bodies for money, but there is a reason that seduction was once mandatory in a female ninja's academy years. Women in that sort of work have to know how to act, and act through ANYTHING. They have to be able to keep up an act-AND be believable-through torture, pleasure,  pain even agony. Sometimes it means between life and death. Her training helped Neji on multiple  occasions, mostly with the branch family, or dealing with Hinata, but also being able to mimic the curse seal effects."

Naruto sat forward, raising one blonde brow "mimic?" in his mind he felt his lifemate still, waiting.

The clan head nodded "Neji's seal never worked the way it was supposed to. He feels something he describes as a pulling sensation, but that is all. There is no pain. I am unsure why his mark doesn't work. Perhaps the one to apply it was a spy for the branch and it was to ensure-even at his age at the time-they could use him later. Perhaps the one to apply it was too old and missed a stroke or line, either way, the result was the same. It doesn't work like it is supposed to."

"So he KNOWS when he feels this tug to fake the pain effects of the seal, using the training from this female."

The clan head nodded "it also has another effect too, by faking it. Whoever tampered with it, hoping to free him think they failed. If it was the branch side, whatever they had planned for a member free of the seal is ruined."

"What makes you think it was tampered with on it's application?"

"Because if the curse seal is tampered with any other time, it will destroy the brain of the wearer as an safety measure. That is why I said there is no freeing the branch side. The Caged Bird seal was created to ensure that the Byukugan doesn't fall into enemy hands. To do that the seal needed to be able to destroy the bearer if an enemy captured them and tried to remove it to allow them access to the members eyes."

He glared at the clan head "I noticed the only ones to have this...security measure are the... mixed blood, even though you yourself AND your daughter's are not pure blood yourself."

The clan head glared back, but then sighed when he returned the look with equal force. "I never said it-or I-was perfect."

In his head he sensed his lifemate's concentration, she was thinking hard, trying to remember something "I remember that day the clan member was found dead from an animal attack. I don't understand."

"What is it, jela lamti?"

"They said he was killed by a bear, but it wasn't just the wounds. Yes there was signs of claw marks and whatever having great strength, but also the throat having been bitten through. They found the saliva identified as a bear. How could niisan have faked that? Sure he MIGHT have faked everything else, but DNA doesn't lie."

Blue eyes narrowed in thought. HE could have taken the bears form and that would explain it, but the young man was human, not Carpathian, even if he shared blood. He knew because he had scanned his mind and body. He was human with some Carpathian blood, mostly centered around the eyes. He was human or he wouldn't have been out in full daylight without problem, as was his lifemate and her father. So the question was, how had he disguised the body as a bear kill so well, so completely that he had left animal saliva behind? The only explanation was that it WAS a bear and either her cousin was taking credit for it, or he somehow got the animal to attack. Perhaps by provoking the animal and leading towards the assassin, or....

His lifemate spoke thoughtfully "ask father if niisan has a summons."

"Summons?"

"I'll explain later."

He narrowed his eyes on the man "my lifemate remembers this animal attack on the dead member. But every sign points to an animal doing it. Tell me, does he have a summons, a bear perhaps."

The man blinked at him before nodding "it was given to him by Sato-san. 'To better protect his cousin' she said."

"But only ninja can use summons! Especially those trained!"  He repeated what his lifemate said.

"That IS true, so Yuki and Taro-san taught him to summon it."

"Where did an Lady Of Seduction gain a summons?"

"It wasn't hers, she had no chakra to use, but it was all she had left of her father who died during the nine-tailed attack. She said she thought her father would approve of using it for such a noble purpose as protecting family. So if he could summon it and gain it's approval to sign the  contract, it was his."

"And obviously it did"  the clan head nodded. "he was summoned to the bear world where he was given permission to sign the contract. There is one summons-a female named Kuma-who seems to have....adopted Neji."

"Summons? World? Explain" he sent back to her.

"It's a timespace jutsu that allows a ninja to call forth an being from another plain to help fight or do various tasks. Summons are animal beings, most intelligent, who are called through a jutsu by using their name. A ninja needs to sign a contract-with permission of the head animal-with blood, chakra and a fingerprint and it is for the entire of the summoners life they can do so. If someone not on the contract tries to summon that animal using that persons blood, the summon will know the difference in their chakra."  She hesitated before adding "Naruto-kun....YOU have one. Jariaya-san let you sign his."

He froze "I do?"

"Yes. When you went with him on the training trip he taught you how to summon then let you sign the contract."

"And what animal is it that I can summon?"

She hesitated, as if afraid of his reaction, but he caught the word in her thoughts 'toad'. He was amused "you thought I would be disappointed or upset over such a creature? Lifemate every animal has a purpose in nature, even those humans see as ugly or useless."

"They are said to be the oldest summons there is" she said, almost by way of apology "I have heard Jariaya sama talking about their legends and prophecies. I think by way of personalities and spirits they are among those closest to humans." She hesitated before adding "Jariaya sama once said that one of their prophecies is about YOU."

This interested him "and what does this prophecy involve?"

"I don't know" she said honestly "That you would have to ask either the toads themselves or Jariaya sama. The toads keep their ways close to their chests."

Naruto turned back to the conversation with her father "so it was this summon who mauled the body to hide the cause of death."

"Or one of them, yes"  he nodded "the animals in training grounds 44 are known for being vicious and brutal, it is why they are used for survival training. After the body was found and the initial examination it was theorized he just angered a bear there and was killed by it. No one else knew he had actually gotten outside before he died. The branch members responsible for sending him out just assumed...."

"He cut through the training grounds on his way there" Naruto nodded.

"Exactly" the man nodded. Naruto drew himself up proudly, locking eyes with the man"you need not fear for her safety anymore. She is my lifemate and to our males there is nothing more important to us then our lifemate's safety and comfort. However be warned, we protect what is ours with savagery and lethal force, as well as our very lives."

This was the ONLY warning he would give. Any who threatened HIS light would die, whether relation or civilian off the street, it didn't matter.

The man looked at him solemnly for a few long seconds, eyes searching for any sign of hesitation or uncertainty. Finding none he relaxed "yes, I believe you will. Can you tell me what happened to you? You are completely different from the boy I used to know."

"On one condition. That YOU explain how and WHAT you know about the Uzumaki line and heritage. I saw and felt your reaction when I mentioned it. I was under the impression only your leader........MY biological parents and the copy-ninja knew about the truth."

The man looked surprised and shocked "Kakashi Hatake knows about it, how?" this changed to thoughtfulness "ah, I should have realized with how close he was to the Forth in the end. After all, he DID try to adopt you at one point."

Both Naruto and his lifemate inside his head stilled. At the same time both spoke in unison, almost the same words, one through the link to the male clan head, the other only in the mind of one of them.

"He tried to adopt me?"  
"He tried to adopt you?"

The clan head nodded "Kakashi-san was away on a mission when the nine-tailed attacked. He claimed he attempted to finish as quickly as possible and return to help, but by the time he arrived it was too late. The Forth and his wife was dead, the village was trying rebuild and grieve their lost ones AND their beloved leader and YOU were being fought over.

I am a member of the Shinobi Council AS WELL AS the Hyuuga, I was there that day. They wanted to kill you, the entire room was in shambles, yelling at each other, fighting over class status, lower members coming out of the wood-work trying to replace their dead clan heads"  he shook his head "blame being thrown around, but mostly at the Uchiha's with Fugaku getting more and more pissed off at having to defend himself and his clan.....when Hiruzen came out to take control and replace Minato-san it pissed off Danzo who had THOUGHT HE could become the next Hokage, which started ANOTHER shouting match....."

He snorted "human politics."

"In this case I agree with you. It took the third blasting the room with KI in order to shut everyone up."

"Who is this....Danzo?"

"WAS. The young Uchiha traitor killed him recently. Good thing too, we discovered he had been working from the inside to try and take over the village and is directly responsible for the massacre of the Uchiha clan."

Naruto sat back, interested "how so?"

"The Uchiha clan believed as one of the founding clans of Kohona and the one trusted with keeping the peace, they were superior and should rule. The clan already had an superiority complex, but this was ridiculous. SOMEONE had manipulated the clan head into this belief. The Hokage was in talks with them, trying to find a peaceful resolution to the civil war they were threatening.

The two clan heirs, Itachi and his little brother Sasuke was NOT part of what they were planning. Sasuke was too young and even though the clan head had trained and brought Itachi up as his weapon, the oldest boy was loyal to his village and people. He saw the things his father didn't want to know, the innocent victims of such an act. The boy had such a sense of honor....That's why it didn't make sense that he would suddenly turn around and slaughter his entire clan-other than his little brother-because 'they bored me and no longer proved a challenge'."

He sighed "Itachi Uchiha was an ANBU at the age of 13.  It turned out his father trained him for it at the hope he would become a bodyguard for the Hokage. So if the 'talks' between clan and the village fell through...."

"He would assassinate the leader, throwing the village into turmoil and making it vulnerable to attack from the inside."

"Exactly" he nodded "only Itachi saw things a different way to his clan. Honestly he was a damned-sight more honorable then them. He saw a village and people his little brother loved, citizens innocent of what his family claimed. He saw being a ninja as something honorable, he believed that being a ninja was about protecting ‘from the shadows’, not glory or killing. Later we learned that while the Hokage was in talks Danzo confronted Itachi. He told him the council had pronounced sentence over the Uchiha for their Traitorous plan. He told him that Danzo was going to send his ROOT agents in to kill the entire clan. He had a choice, either he allow it and loose his beloved brother, or he does it himself and Danzo would ALLOW his brother to live. Itachi had no choice for his brother’s sake. He couldn’t bare to tell his brother-who idolized their father-what was going on so he lied, he told him he killed them ‘because they no longer challenged him’ and left his brother there, knowing at least he would be safe and cared for here as the last survivor. Sasuke was only six at the time.” He blinked “As for your adoption, Kakashi demanded he be allowed to adopt and raise you. He wanted you to grow up to be like and know your father, even IF he wasn’t allowed to tell you who he was. However the council refused, citing he was too young and his skills were needed for missions, ‘besides’ they said ‘as an ex-ANBU he wasn’t the sort of person who they wished raising a baby.' Which even I knew was rubbish considering they threw you into an orphanage instead.”

“And the Uzumaki Clan?”

“My father may not have been able to find out where our mother came from, but my brother and I would NOT let any rules stop it. We discovered she was from an lesser unknown clan, suspected to be an off-shoot of the Uzumaki clan that went into hiding after the slaughter. We were unable to find any other trace of them though. Either she was the last or they were expert at hiding.”

Naruto sat back and looked thoughtful “either would be possible. If your mother was not the last the others could have awakened their heritage and been in hiding. If what I am suspecting is true then they would have had the skill to hide, and the reason to.”

The male frowned at him “what do you mean?”

“The reason your mother was in hiding and the thing that killed her.” The man sat forward, face intense and at intense attention “Who?! What?!”

“An creature of great evil. A vampire.” The clan head sat back, scowling at him “is this a joke? It isn’t funny young man.”

“I assure you this is no joke. Has it ever occurred to you that perhaps making themselves into myth was the vampires way of making sure no one believed they existed so when they attacked or murdered their victim would never believe until their last moments.”

The clan head sat back, looking thoughtful. He didn’t speak for a while, looking like he was trying to think it through seriously before he finally relented with “you may have a point there. Tell me everything."

So he did, about his kind and people, the Dragonseeker's, the Uzumaki and vampires.

The older man frowned "So this.....female wandered here after her mates death, heavily pregnant, and left the child here to be raised by ninja's. Her and her.....lifemate were the founders of the Uzumaki clan. My MOTHER was an Uzumaki hiding then murdered by a vampire because he thought as a fellow....Carpathian she belonged to him and him alone. He probably murdered her because she refused him after finding father, who was HER lifemate. She left us with our clan mother with the message for father  and the implanted story because she KNEW he was coming and he would have killed us as well."

Naruto nodded "if you had of been born Carpathian he would have been able to track you down and probably murdered your entire clan to get to you. As children of her blood he risked you eventually coming into your blood-rite, sensing him and destroying him. However your father's blood in you is too strong and either suppressed or hid your Carpathian blood. However your daughter-my lifemate-HER blood is strong, strong enough to call to me. It is just as well your mother never initiated your father. If she had he would have been murdered along with her, and you would never have known the truth."

He nodded, never knowing how his father died, why he was in a brothel at the time, not knowing why he....felt any different to others.....THEN what would have happened if this evil found them? If it took Hinata. What horrors what she have had to live through at his hands?

She had already almost been taken from him once....wait, could it mean.....? Was it possible?

The blonde looked at him critically “You have thought of something. What is it?”

“My daughter was kidnapped when she was a child. The ninja responsible was one of a group of representatives from another village-Kumogakure-in Hidden Leaf for the signing of a peace treaty. I killed him to stop the kidnapping and to protect my daughter. The village proclaimed there was NOT a kidnapping attempt and demanded my life in return for the life taken. However unknown to me until to late my brother took my place. I was prepared too take my punishment for my daughter’s life, but he took my place before I knew it. All this time we thought they were lying to try and take my daughter for her eyes, or worse.....” the words ‘breeding mare’ came to his mine and Naruto gritt his teeth and fangs in fury as he tried to regain control of the animals rage at the thought of what COULD have happened to his lifemate, but the man was continuing hesitantly “is it.....is it possible they were really telling the truth? That they weren’t seeking an Hyuuga female to breed the Byukugan into their village for their ninja and that this man was acting on his own? That the ninja was working for the vampire and he somehow knew about Hinata and was planning on taking her to him? Even at that age?” he swallowed at the thought, incredibly horrified and disgusted at the thought of his eldest in the hands of an creature of evil.

Naruto sat back and thought about it as he answered thoughtfully “vampire HAVE taken gifted females before they can reach of age. A few of the lifemates of our males have been discovered after the vampires have murdered their families as children and either the females learned to run and hide, or-in Destinys’ case-was practically raised by them. If the vampire wanted to take your daughter he wouldn’t have hesitated to slaughter every single one of your clan for her.” At this last sentence he gave the man a pointed look before he went on.

“It would not be too much trouble for the vampire to find out the truth about your father and mother. We can control human minds, either against your will or make you THINK telling us is all your own will. It would be no trouble for him to get the information from one of the prostitutes then either murder her, or wipe her memory. Then he just watches you. Since I sense that your blood-despite being half-is weak, mostly concentrated around your eyes-you may not have known. He can be anything from a mouse or even the very air itself so you would have not known. Your nephew has the same thing as you, so logically so must your brother have been. Tell me, do all three of you have more sensitive eyes than anyone else in your clan?”

“I don’t know about Hizashi, but Neji’s Byakugan is more powerful than Hinata’s. It has always been so even before his training in that dojutsu kekkei genkai.” He understood and nodded “While it IS possible that this ninja was working for the vampire to take your daughter, it produces too many questions.”

“Such as?”

“Even if this ninja found out about the vampire and bargained your daughter for the hope of ‘immortality’, a vampire would just prefer to turn the fool human into a ghoul.”

“Ghoul?"

“An human-usually male-corrupted by vampire blood and programmed for one task and one task only. They will stop at NOTHING to do so, ignoring all wounds, burns, pain or missing limbs to do so, all that matters is the command. They will even go through family and nothing you can say can reason with or stop them. Only destroying the brain and the entire body will stop them and their blood is contaminated by the vampires, meaning any exposure can infect you with the parasites in the blood, risking you not only becoming controlled but exposed to the vampire."

He looked thoughtful then "although since THIS vampire is cut off from the others and may have always been, it would NOT have the knowledge or abilities the other of its kind have, INCLUDING the parasites. It is entirely possible it has no knowledge of HOW to create ghouls. Although with how old it is suspected to be, it would have been logical for to have discovered this by now."  He looked to the clan head "for now we will keep that idea that it is a major possibly, but it is not confirmed."

The clan head nodded "you said there was questions for this to be possible, what sort of questions?"

"Why didn't he take your daughter himself and murder your clan to ensure no one could interfere?"

"If he had of he would have exposed his existence to us, wouldn't he? Hidden Leaf would have put an KIS order on him and offered huge rewards for information on him and his whereabouts. A bit hard to work 'from the shadows' when every village is hunting you for the reward."

He snorted "a vampire would not have cared if humans were hunting him, he just slaughters them all after having 'a little fun' with them. Vampires are the embodiment of true evil. They thrive off the anguish, pain, death, torture and destruction. Anything you can imagine in your worse nightmare is but pitiful compared to what they can and WILL do. War is but entertainment to them."

The clan head narrowed his eyes at him "what do you mean by 'a little fun'?"

"What do you think I mean? Seizing control over a weak willed 'ninja' and forcing them to slaughter their team, fully aware of what they are doing. Paralyzing a team and forcing them to watch while he takes their female teammate against her will before either slaughtering them all, or forcing them to kill each other-or even making one of the males take her."

Looking violently ill the clan head spoke "how could he get away with this!"

"Simple. No one knows who or what they are dealing with and even if they did, either no one will believe in it or them-even WITH proof-or they either wipe their memory or outright kill them.

He would have no worries in this world. Either he just slaughters those foolish enough to try, uses an illusion, sets someone else up to take the fall or just goes to ground for a few generations."

"Go to ground?"

"Our version of sleep. The earth nourishes us, sustains and heals and protects us. We sleep the day away in her embrace and rise the next night."

“So if you sleep in the earth of a night, how will you protect my daughter?”

“Even in our death-like sleep the call of a lifemate will come through. We can protect them AND those we are blood-connected to.”

“How?” the head of the Hyuuga clan frowned at him “how, if you are stuck in the earth during the day, are you going to protect my daughter?”

“Our blood connection allows me to connect to her mind, much like we are now. Through this I can send her energy to allow her a boost, or, if the situation is dire enough I can use her eyes.”

The male adult looked disturbed and alarmed “HOW exactly?”

“I can use her view of the situation and with our blood connection I can funnel my power through it and destroy those that threaten her” he made a motion “It is hard to explain. I can also summon a storm to confuse and scare, and, if necessary, destroy with the lightening. Mother nature does more then protect and nurture us, she allows us control over all her creatures and elements if needed and we can communicate with all the life she creates.”

The man frowned “nature energy? Do you mean....senjutsu chakra? But only a few can use this! Hashirama Senju sama was one and the only other known is Jiraiya sama the toad sage! Wait” he hesitated, thinking “Before you disappeared you went into training with the sage himself. No one except the Hokage has seen or heard from him since your disappearance so only HE knows if you went through training for THAT, but...”

The blonde nodded “I have heard that theory. It is unconfirmed. However you Hokage is currently researching this chakra you mentioned and our similarities. Our races are compatible, otherwise your mother and father would have never been able to reproduce, as did the Uzumaki ancestors.”

“The problem will be how to handle the elders. They will refuse to all my daughter to marry outside the clan, they will see it as allowing another clan access to the Byukugan which is forbidden. The only way they will allow the mating is if they THINK their gain will be more than yours. If you can offer enough to make them BELIEVE they will gain something no other village or clan can gain.....”

“Other than the abilities and advantages of my kind, you mean?” he asked and the clan head nodded “I am what is known as a Gem Caller. I can make jewelry specially created and designed for each client and valued at high prices. So I am well off. My family are children of mother nature and have a closer more powerful bond to her then other of my race. There are skills and abilities only my race bare that no other can do. On top of that I am a hunter of renegades of my kind. Compared to tracing a Vampire, no human can hide from me once I set on their trail.”

The man looked at him sharply “so you are like a Hunter-nin?”

The blonde nodded “Your Hokage explained to me the differences in rank for your world. Hunter-nin are a branch of ANBU, so we are closer in rank to them in OUR world to them. ANBU, as it was explained to me, protect the village from exceptional threats, conduct high-risk missions into enemy countries, and deal with extremely strong ninja. They are also responsible for carrying out assassinations and missions requiring specially trained ninja. All ANBU, I am told carry Ninjatō, which are usually strapped to their backs, and they all know the layout of the human body in detail. By using Temporary Paralysis Technique, ANBU members can paralyze an opponent, leaving them open for attack. With Time Reversal Technique, an ANBU can put someone in a state of reverse hypnosis, allowing them to remember details that they otherwise would not.

ANBU is an organization that serves under the direct command of their Kage. Kakashi Hatake was a former captain and Itachi Uchiha became an ANBU captain at age 13. Ibiki Morino, the proctor of the first Chūnin exam, is the head of the Konoha ANBU Torture and Interrogation Squad. Zabuza Momochi and Raiga Kurosuki were once part of Kirigakure's ANBU.”

The man nodded “That is correct. I think you being an ANBU-even if it’s for another world-would go a long way towards the elders thinking your power can be....brought into the clan.” The blonde lent back in his chair, a dark smirk on his face “if they prove too difficult I can...convince them it is in their best interest to allow the union, have no fear. NOTHING will keep me from my lifemate.”

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End file.
